ABOUT
Caitlin Kozman is a conceptual artist and writer whose practice disrupts the evidentiary authority of the archive through the intersections of photomedia and feminist performance. Grounded in their lived experience of confinement, Kozman’s work critically examines the institutional pathologisation of the body, interrogating how patriarchal design and historical frameworks of "hysteria" continue to be weaponised. By queering the gaze, their practice destabilizes hegemonic narratives of class and consent, reframing self-representation as an act of radical reclamation and bodily autonomy.
To articulate these themes, Kozman subjects the photographic image to deliberate material trauma. This intentional "bruising"—using analogue C-type processes, chemical degradation, and physical abrasion—is a direct response to systemic confinement and a rejection of the medium’s association with objective truth. By treating the image as a site of negotiation, Kozman forces a confrontation with the failure of representation, inviting the viewer to find beauty and survival in the unresolved glitch. Ultimately, their practice functions as a series of relics: residues of a performance where the artist, the model, and the material are inextricably linked.
Caitlin Kozman, Photobooth c-type prints, 2025
artist statement
Silent actions are prompts used to describe the void.
My practice interrogates the friction between the photographic image and the reality it purports to document. While photomedia is historically coded as an evidentiary tool, I approach the medium as a site of failure, erasure, and performance. My work is a broader inquiry into bodily autonomy, class, and consent—investigating how patriarchal design and historical frameworks of "hysteria" continue to shape the narratives imposed upon us. Informed by my own lived experience of psychiatric confinement, I critically examine the institutional pathologisation of women, using the photograph to dismantle the clinical gaze.
I treat the photographic surface — specifically the analogue C-type print — as a vulnerable material that can be bruised, abraded, and degraded. By subjecting my images to physical interventions — including chemical manipulation, intentional decay, and sanding — I strip away the veneer of "objective truth." This process of deliberate material trauma is an act of reauthoring and radical reclamation. Through a queering of the female gaze, I destabilize hegemonic narratives of class and consent, ensuring the final work becomes a surviving relic of a performance rather than a static, clinical recording.
By documenting my own body and environment, my work asks: what remains when the image, and the institutional frameworks that uphold it, are fractured? By embracing the glitch and the void, I invite the viewer to look beyond the representational surface to find agency, resonance, and beauty in the unresolved.
CAITLIN KOZMAN IS A CONCEPTUAL ARTIST, WRITER, AND PERFORMER INTERROGATING INSTITUTIONAL CONTROL, THE PATHOLOGISED BODY, AND THE FRACTURED PHOTOGRAPHIC ARCHIVE.
bio
Known for "bruising" photomedia — a methodology involving chemical degradation, physical abrasion, and environmental exposure — Kozman treats the image as a site of negotiation and resistance. By utilising analogue c-type printing to explore themes of class, consent, and institutional control, their practice challenges patriarchal design and the historical pathologisation of the body. Through a queering of the gaze, they transform the photographic surface into a relic of performance. Their work invites a confrontation with the "unresolved," repositioning the image as a fractured, evolving document rather than a fixed, clinical record.
A graduate of the Australian National University (BVA Honours, 2017) and RMIT University (Master of Arts Management, 2023), Kozman’s academic background is underscored by industry experience in arts facilitation and archival assistance. Their work has been exhibited at the National Museum of Australia, Wollongong Art Gallery, and various independent galleries across Australia. In 2023, Kozman was awarded the Vice Chancellor’s Excellence Award and placed on the Dean’s List at RMIT, reflecting a sustained commitment to both rigorous material inquiry and professional practice.
CV
solo exhibitions
2023 Untitled Time, Sandbox Studios, Melbourne, Australia
2018 Intact, Gaffa Creative Precinct, Sydney, Australia
2017 Between Wash Cycles, Platform by Canberra Contemporary, Australia
2016 Dry, M16 Artspace, Canberra, Australia
Group Exhibitions
2025 Queering, The Victorian Pride Centre, Melbourne, Australia
2023 The Big Queer Show, Unassigned Gallery, Brunswick, Australia
2022 there’s a crack in everything…, Wollongong Art Gallery, Wollongong, Australia
2020 Suggestive Terrain, Tributary Projects, Canberra, Australia
2017 Industrial Zone: Art About Sex, Tributary Projects, Canberra, Australia
2016 Graduate Exhibition, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
2016 The Postgraduate and Research Students’ Association Pop Up Gallery, Australian National University, Australia
2014 Springboard Award Exhibition, Belconnon Community Arts Centre, Canberra, Australia
2014 Graduate Exhibition, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
2014 Australian National University Drawing Prize, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
2014 Random, Australian National University Gallery, Canberra, Australia
2013 Random, Australian National University Gallery, Canberra, Australia
2013 The F Word, Photospace Gallery, Australian National University, Australia
2013 #Bombala, Bombala Train Station House, Bombala, Australia
2013 #Bombala, Queensland Centre for Photography, Brisbane, Australia
2013 #Bombala, Australian National University Gallery, Canberra, Australia
2013 Art School Ball Silent Auction, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
2012 Dust to Dust, National Museum of Australia, Canberra, Australia
2012 Friday on my Wall, Painting Gallery, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
2012 Friday on my Wall, Painting Gallery, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
2012 Art School Ball Silent Auction, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
2011 Random, Australian National University Gallery, Canberra, Australia
2011 Friday on my Wall, Painting Gallery, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
2011 Friday on my Wall, Painting Gallery, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
2011 Friday on my Wall, Painting Gallery, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
Education
2022 - 2023 Master of Art (Arts Management), RMIT University, Australia
2015 - 2015 Honours of Visual Arts, Australian National University, Australia
2011 - 2014 Bachelor of Visual Arts, Australian National University, Australia
Awards
2023 The Vice Chancellor's Excellence Award, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia
2023 The Dean's List, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia
2014 Springboard Award (Winner), Belconnon Community Centre Springboard Award, Belconnon Community Centre, Canberra, Australia
2014 Drawing Prize (Finalist), Australian National University Drawing Prize, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia