Johanna Billing

Johanna Billing has been creating video works since 1999 that intricately blend music, movement, and rhythm.

Biography of Johanna Billing

Johanna Billing was born in 1973 in Jönköping, Sweden. From 1994 to 1999, she studied at the Konstfack University of Arts, Crafts and Design in Stockholm. 

Between 1998 and 2010, Johanna Billing ran the independent record label Make it Happen. Her deep connection to music is also reflected in her long-running touring project "You Don't Love Me Yet" (2002-2021).

Her work has been showcased in prominent international exhibitions, including Documenta 12, the 9th Istanbul Biennial (2005), and the 50th Venice Biennale. Billing’s participation in these influential art events highlights her global recognition and the thematic depth of her practice.

Her recent solo exhibitions include "Each Moment Presents What Happens" at Whitechapel Gallery in London (2024), "Each Moment Presents What Happens" at Hollybush Gardens in London (2023), "In Purple" at Kalmar Konstmuseum in Kalmar (2022), "Where she is at" at Pavement Gallery in Manchester (2021), and many more.

Additionally, Billing's works have been featured in numerous group shows held at various galleries and museums worldwide, including Museum of Contemporary Art in Busan, Dialogue Gallery in Lisbon, Mori Art Museum in Tokyo, Zachęta – National Gallery of Art in Warsaw, Centre d'Art La Panera in Lleida, Ottawa Art Gallery in Ottawa, High Line Art in New York, among others.

Currently, the artist lives and works in Stockholm.

Johanna Billing's Famous Works 

Her notable works include "In Purple" (2019), "Pulheim Jam Session" (2015), "I'm Gonna Live Anyhow until I Die" (2012), "This Is How We Walk On the Moon" (2007), and many others.

Billing's "Each Moment Presents What Happens" (2022) is a collaborative project that reinterprets John Cage's "Untitled Event (Theatre piece number 1, 1952)." The film features students, primarily from Bristol Grammar School in the UK, participating in an experimental, improvisational, and multidisciplinary process that embraces failure, exchange, and imagination.

"Pulheim Jam Session" (2015) explores concepts of locality, staging, and participation. The film contrasts two different activities: a car jam and a jamming session. By examining these distinct forms of freedom and constraint side by side, Billing delves into how each activity’s unique dynamics shape their respective experiences.

Johanna Billing's Art Style

The artist blends the production techniques of collective live events and workshops with cinematic language, guiding participants while also fostering improvisations around performance. This approach allows her to explore the intersections of the public and private spheres, as well as the individual's role within society. While Billing frequently engages with political climates and cultural specifics, her documentary approach transforms these elements into a fictive space, examining both real and imagined events to reveal their intersections. Music plays a significant role in her films, serving as a tool for communication, memory, and reconstruction.