Born in Poland in 1966;
lives and works in Montreal and in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Kinga Araya’s multidisciplinary practice is organized around a thematics of movement and communication, in the manner of a gesture or an act eliciting the uncertainty of the contemporary human condition. Investigating cultural identity from the perspective of the immigrant experience, Araya’s work also resonates with the notion of duality—of cultures, countries and languages. In the video Fifty-Five, the artist examines the phenomenon of multiculturalism, choosing as her subject Montreal’s Saint-Laurent Boulevard, “The Main.” Well-known for its diverse cultural mosaic, Araya focuses particularly on the perceptions of citizens living nearby. Blending performative actions, interviews, short video clips and archival footage, the video presents visual and sound narratives produced along the No. 55 bus route. This work underscores the hybrid, diversified nature of urban space and its
capacity to engender exchanges.

Kinga Araya’s work has been shown in numerous festivals in North America and abroad, notably at Peak Gallery, Toronto (2004), OBORO, Montreal (2004), and Galerie Christiane Chassay, Montreal (2002). The video Fifty-Five premiered at La Centrale, Montreal, in the summer of 2006. Araya has a master of fine arts from York University, Toronto (1998) as well as a PhD in art history and visual arts from Concordia University, Montreal (2004). She is Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow at the Humanities Forum, University of Pennsylvania.