Makiko Harris (b. 1989, The Netherlands) is a Japanese American interdisciplinary artist. Currently working between San Francisco and London, Harris earned her MA in Contemporary Art Practice from the Royal College of Arts, London (2023). She also studied painting at the California College of the Arts, and earned her BA in Philosophy and Art with a focus on feminist philosophy and aesthetics from Tufts University, Boston (2011). Harris’ work explores contemporary feminism, belonging, and desire. Informed by feminist theory and her own experiences as a biracial woman, Harris uses painting, installation, sculpture, and sound to create work that challenges viewers to think critically about their own definitions of identity and roles in power dynamics.
Solo exhibitions include (Upcoming) Lacquered Rebellion, Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery, London, UK (2024); Be a Body with Me, Pop-Up private gallery, London, UK (2022); Jewels of Consciousness, Dyson Gallery, London, UK (2021); The Truth or Consequences Series, The Academy SF, San Francisco, CA (2020); The Truth of Consequences Series, Magnolia Brewing, San Francisco, CA (2020); Silent Conviction, Frank Ratchye Project Space, San Francisco, CA (2019).
Group exhibitions include Material Instinct, 120710 Gallery, Berkeley, CA (2024); Unraveled, Maximilian Wolfgang Gallery, London, UK (2024); Group Show, Commonsense Gallery, Vienna, Austria (2023); Pandora: The Art of Loves, Artiq, London, UK (2023); Mother Tongue: Bodies Beyond Words, London, UK (2023); The Edge, Gallery G, supported by Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation, Hiroshima, Japan (2023); RCA 2023 Degree Show, The Truman Brewery, London, UK (2023); Texture, Liz Lidgett Gallery, Des Moines, IA (2023); Beyond Surface Tactile Presence, screening of Circle Burn, Tate Modern, London, UK (2023); Beyond Surface Festival, Montez Press Radio, New York, NY and online (2023); Unfolding Traces presented by Pigeon Park, The Hangar Gallery, London, UK (2023); Beyond Repetition, The Old Chickpea Factory, Messejana, Portugal (2022); A Line Made By Walking, Upper Gulbenkian Gallery, London, UK (2022); Hybrid Realities: CAPSalon, Dyson Gallery, London, UK (2022); Falling into Place, Liz Lidgett Gallery, Des Moines, IA (2022); Collected, Liz Lidgett Gallery, Des Moines, IA (2021); 14th Anniversary, Secession Art + Design Gallery, San Francisco, CA (2021); A Joy Unexpected, Root Division, San Francisco, CA (2021).
Highlights
Makiko Harris has been the recipient of numerous awards and residencies, most recently including PADA Portugal in 2024 and Grand Prize Winner of The HIGH Prize for Excellence, HIGH, London in 2023. Previously, Harris was awarded with the Buinho Creative Residency, Portugal and a grant from Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation in 2022, as well as the Desert Mountain Retreat, Art and Soul International, Truth or Consequences, New Mexico, 2019. In 2024, Harris spoke at the Bonhams x The Art of Seeing Magazine event in Munich, Germany. Additionally, she has been featured as a featured artist in collaborations with MUNTHE Art Mondays (2024), HIGH Fashion Collection (2023) in addition to the San Francisco Symphony 2021-2022 season campaign.