Mladen Bizumic is an artist based between Vienna and Auckland who explores the intersection of artistic and photographic practice. Through a wide range of media—including photography, painting, drawing, installation, text, and moving image—his exhibitions critically engage with the structures and conventions of art production, display, and distribution. Bizumic studied at Elam School of Fine Arts, University of Auckland and at the Academy of Fine Arts, Vienna.
Bizumic has exhibited extensively, including the 60th Venice Biennale, MUMOK – Museum of Modern Art in Vienna, the 9th Lyon Biennial, the 10th Istanbul Biennial, Te Papa Tongarewa – the Museum of New Zealand, the 5th Busan Biennial, the 3rd Vienna Biennale, the 1st Auckland Triennial, and the steirischer herbst festival '08 Graz. The work of Mladen Bizumic is represented by Lombardi–Kargl Vienna.
Bizumic’s artwork has been collected by notable collections including MUMOK – Museum of Modern Art Vienna; MAK – Museum of Applied Arts and Contemporary Art, Vienna; George Eastman Museum, Rochester, New York; Te Papa Tongarewa – the Museum of New Zealand, Wellington; FRAC Fonds Regional d'Art Contemporain, Pays de la Loire, Nantes; Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota, Florida; Govett Brewster Art Gallery, New Plymouth; Chartwell Collection – Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tamaki; University of Auckland Art Collection; Hocken Collections – University of Otago, Dunedin; Victoria University Art Collection, Wellington; October Salon Collection, Belgrade and Fotosammlung des Bundes – Museum der Moderne, Salzburg.
Recent exhibitions include KCB – the Cultural Centre of Belgrade (2025); the 60th Venice Biennale (2024); Georg Kargl Fine Arts, Vienna (2023); the Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota (2022); MUMOK – the Museum of Modern Art, Vienna (2021); Artspace Aotearoa, Auckland (2020); Vienna Biennial, MAK – the Museum of Applied Arts, Vienna (2019); Camera Austria, Graz (2019); Salon of the Museum of Contemporary Art, Belgrade (2018); Art Basel (2017); MOSTYN, Wales (2017); Leopold Museum, Vienna (2017); Zacheta – the National Gallery of Art, Warsaw (2017); George Eastman Museum, Rochester, New York (2016); FRAC Pays de la Loire, Nantes (2016); Sies + Höke, Düsseldorf (2016); Govett-Brewster Art Gallery, New Plymouth (2015); Fotogalleriet, Oslo (2014); Auckland Art Gallery, Auckland (2014); galerie frank elbaz, Paris (2014); Kunstmuseum, Thun (2013); KM – Halle für Kunst & Medien, Graz (2013); Adam Art Gallery, Victoria University of Wellington (2013); Neuer Kunstverein Wien, Vienna (2012); Kopfbau, Basel (2011); Fondation d'Entreprise Ricard, Paris (2010); Heidelberger Kunstverein, Heidelberg (2009); Le Ferme du Buisson, Paris (2008); steirischer herbst festival, Universalmuseum Joanneum, Graz (2008); Lyon Biennial, MoCA, Lyon (2007); Te Papa – The Museum of New Zealand, Wellington (2007); Istanbul Biennial (2007); PROGRAM, Berlin (2007); Künstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin (2007); Moscow Biennale (2007); CAC – Contemporary Art Centre, Vilnius (2006); Busan Biennial, Metropolitan Art Museum, Busan (2006); Institute of Contemporary Arts, Perth (2006); the City Gallery, Wellington (2005); Govett-Brewster Art Gallery, New Plymouth (2004); Gus Fisher Gallery, University of Auckland (2002), Sue Crockford Gallery, Auckland (2002).
Bizumic has been awarded numerous prizes, grants and fellowships including, the State Scholarship for Art Photography of the Chancellery of Austria (2022); the London Residency of the Chancellery of Austria and Austrian Cultural Forum (2020); Shpilman International Prize for Excellence in Photography (nomination), Israel Museum, Jerusalem (2018); New Work Grant, Creative New Zealand (2005, 2009, 2017); Deutsche Börse Photography Foundation Prize (nomination), The Photographers’ Gallery, London (2015); Artist-in-Residence, Two Rooms Gallery, Auckland (2007); Artist-in-Residence, Künstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin (2006-2007); Frances Hodgkins Fellowship, University of Otago, Dunedin (2004); Artist-in-Residence, Govett Brewster Art Gallery (2003), Fowlds Memorial Prize as the most distinguished student in the University of Auckland’s Faculty of Architecture, Property, Planning & Fine Arts (2000).
Bizumic has given lectures at art institutions including the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna; Art University Linz; Museum of Contemporary Art, Belgrade; Camera Austria, Graz; Art History Department, University of Auckland; Auckland University of Technology; School of Art, Otago Polytechnic, Dunedin; Victoria University of Wellington; Massey University, Wellington; The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art – the State University of Florida.
The artwork of Bizumic has been written about in Artforum, Frieze, Camera Austria, Parnass, Springerin, Eikon, the New Zealand Herald, the NZ Listener, Slanted, Die Presse, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, and Le Monde. Bizumic's own writing has been published by TEXTE ZUR KUNST, Berlin.