Gallery

Johanna Björkis a visual artist born and raised in Sweden, and currently based in Ojai, California. Her work is about shining a light on sometimes difficult topics — such as her experience as a young cancer survivor — but doing so through a lens of beauty and optimism. Because she strongly believes those two concepts are the most powerful conduits of transformation. She often uses her own body as the subject matter, in a way that is both exhibitionistic and vulnerable. Her work plays with the vernacular of pinup/centerfold photography, taking motifs that would traditionally be considered sexual but become subversive when you see the whole picture.There’s beauty and light to be found in everything. Instead of submitting to darkness, Björk chooses to see things through a positive lens — often incorporating shiny, bright, iridescent aspects into her work. Like a disco ball, but one where the shiny, dazzling exterior serves as a protective layer for something darker and more profound — akin to the hot, denseball of iron that forms the earth’s core