One of the most influential and important photographic artists of the 21st century, Roger Ballen’s photographs span over forty years.  His strange and extreme works confront the viewer and challenge them to come with him on a journey into their own minds as he explores the deeper recesses of his own.
Roger Ballen was born in New York in 1950 but for nearly 40 years he has lived and worked in South Africa. His work as a geologist took him out into the countryside and led him to take up his camera and explore the hidden world of small South African towns. At first he explored the empty streets in the glare of the midday sun but, once he had made the step of knocking on people’s doors, he discovered a world inside these houses which was to have a profound effect on his work. These interiors with their distinctive collections of objects and the occupants within these closed worlds took his unique vision on a path from social critique to the creation of metaphors for the inner mind. After 1994 he no longer looked to the countryside for his subject matter finding it closer to home in Johannesburg.
Over the past thirty five years his distinctive style of photography has evolved using a simple square format in stark and beautiful black and white. In the earlier works in the exhibition his connection to the tradition of documentary photography is clear but through the 1990s he developed a style he describes as ‘documentary fiction’. After 2000 the people he first discovered and documented living on the margins of South African society increasingly became a cast of actors working with Ballen in the series’ Outland (2000, revised in 2015) and Shadow Chamber (2005) collaborating to create powerful psychodramas.
The line between fantasy and reality in his subsequent series’ Boarding House (2009) and Asylum of the Birds (2014) became increasingly blurred and in these series he employed drawings, painting, collage and sculptural techniques to create elaborate sets. There was an absence of people altogether, replaced by photographs of individuals now used as props, by doll or dummy parts or where people did appear it was as disembodied hands, feet and mouths poking disturbingly through walls and pieces of rag. The often improvised scenarios were now completed by the unpredictable behaviour of animals whose ambiguous behaviour became crucial to the overall meaning of the photographs. In this phase Ballen invented a new hybrid aesthetic, but one still rooted firmly in black and white photography.
In his artistic practice Ballen has increasingly been won over by the possibilities of integrating photography and drawing. He has expanded his repertoire and extended his visual language. By integrating drawing into his photographic and video works, the artist has not only made a lasting contribution to the field of art, but equally has made a powerful commentary about the human condition and its creative potential.
His contribution has not been limited to stills photography and Ballen has been the creator of a number of acclaimed and exhibited short films that dovetail with his photographic series’. The collaborative film I Fink You Freeky, created for the cult band Die Antwoord in 2012, has garnered over 125-million hits on YouTube. He has taken his work into the realms of sculpture and installation, at Paris’ Musée de la Chasse et de la Nature (2017), Australia’s Sydney College of the Arts (2016) and at the Serlachius Museum in Finland (2015) is to name but a few.  The spectacular installation at Les Rencontres d’Arles 2017, “House of the Ballenesque” was voted as one of the best exhibitions for 2017.   In 2018 at the Wiesbaden Biennale, Germany, another installation “Roger Ballen’s Bazaar/Bizarre” was created in an abandoned shopping centre.
Ballen’s series, The Theatre of Apparitions (2016), is inspired by the sight of these hand-drawn carvings on blacked-out windows in an abandoned women’s prison.
Ballen started to experiment using different spray paints on glass and then ‘drawing on’ or removing the paint with a sharp object to let natural light through. The results have been likened prehistoric cave-paintings: the black, dimensionless spaces on the glass are canvases onto which Ballen has carved his thoughts and emotions. He also released a related animated film, Theatre of Apparitions, which has been nominated for various awards.
In September 2017 Thames & Hudson published a large volume of the collected photography with extended commentary by Ballen titled Ballenesque Roger Ballen: A Retrospective.
Halle Saint Pierre in Paris opened an exhibition September 6th 2019 titled The World According to Roger Ballen.  Thames & Hudson published the book in French and English to accompany the show.  His work took over the entire space for more than a year closing in January 2021.  The World According to Roger Ballen has since been successfully exhibited at Jakopic Gallery in Ljubljana, Slovenia; as well as the Kunstmuseum Den Haag, The Hague.
In October 2020, Hatje Cantz released Roger the Rat which was produced in Johannesburg between 2015 and 2020.  Here Ballen creates and documents a part-human, part-rat creature who lives an isolated life outside of mainstream society. This book presents the cycle of photographs in the form of an impressive show that keeps the reader reflecting long after the last page.  Ballen also produced a film that accompanies the book launch during October 2020.
Roger Ballen has published over 25 books internationally.  His works are in more that 50 of the most important international museum collections.
In the fall of 2022, Thames and Hudson released a second volume of Ballenesque Roger Ballen: A Retrospective in paperback.
Roger Ballen was one of the artists that represented South Africa at the Venice Biennale Arte 2022 in Italy

2019  Lifetime Achievement Award, Bokeh SA Awards
2018  Honorary Doctor of Art and Design, Kingston University, United Kingdom
2017  The Asia Pacific Brands Foundation Legendary Award
2014  Süddeutsche Zeitung Magazin, Edition 46, Artist of the Year, published on 14 November
2012  Best Music Video, I Fink U Freeky, Plus Camerimage International Film Festival of the Art of Cinematography in Bydgoszcz, Poland
2012  I Fink U Freeky, Award for best music video at the 20th Short Vila do Conde International Film Festival, Portugal
2010  Finalist – Lucie Awards, Curator/Exhibition of the Year: Roger Ballen: Photographs 1982 – 2009. Curated by Dr. Anthony Bannon for the George Eastman House, Rochester, New York.
2006  Art Directors Club Award Photography
2005  The Selma Blair Witch Project, New York Times Magazine, 31 October
2004  Top 10 Exhibition, Matthew Higgs, Artforum
2002  Citigroup Prize, finalist, UK
2002  Photographer of the Year, Rencontres d’ Arles
2002  Top 10 Exhibition, Vince Aletti, Artforum
2001  PhotoEspana, Best Photographic Book of the Year, Spain
2001  Photo-eye, Best Documentary Title, Best Photography Books of 2001
2000  Sani Festival, Best Solo Exhibition, Greece
2001  Special mention: UNICEF Photo of the Year

2025  Vestfossen Kunstlaboratorium, Oslo, Norway
2025  Mario Giacomelli. The photographer and the artist, Palazzo Espozioni, Rome, Italy
2025  Mattatoi, Rome, Italy
2025  Roger Ballen. Spirits and Spaces, BUILDING Milano, Italy
2025  Who Lives There, Villa Medici, Rome, Italy
2025  Suseong Artpia, Daegu, Korea
2025  Museum Gugging, Vienna, Austria
2024  Roger Ballen Venice Apparitions, SpazioEventi La Toletta, Venice, Italy
2024  Ballen by Ballen, Galleria Giampaolo Abbondio, Todi, Italy
2024  Tales of Wonder, Camara Oscura, Spain
2024  The Uncanny Lens / La Lente Inquiétente, with Peter-Joel Witkin, Castel Ivano, Trentina, Italy
2023  Valletta Contemporary, Malta
2023  Fotografiska, Tallinn, Estonia
2023  Baroque Gallery, Chernivtsy, Ukraine
2023  Galerie Les Douches, Paris, France
2023  Christophe Guye Gallery, Zürich, Switzerland
2023  Haihui Modern Art Museum, China
2023  Valerius Gallery, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg
2023  Museum Tinguely, Basel, Switzerland
2023  Hungarian House of Photography/Mai Mano House, Budapest, Hungary
2023  Galleria Lume, Sao Paulo, Brasil
2022  Galleria Lume, Sao Paulo, Brasil
2022  diChroma photography, Madrid, Spain
2022  Senigallia City of Photography, Senigallia, Italy
2022  Fotomuseum Den Haag, Netherlands
2022  Venice Biennale Arte 2022 “The Milk of Dreams”, Venice, Italy
2021  Fotomuseum Den Haag, Netherlands
2021  National Museum of Contemporary Art, Athens, Greece
2021  Jakopič Gallery, Ljubljana, Slovenia
2021  Portugal Centre of Photography, Oporto City, Portugal
2020  The Florida Museum of Photographic Arts, USA
2020  Thessaloniki Museum of Photography, Greece
2020  Artco Gallery Berlin
2020  Halle St Pierre, Paris, France
2020  Karsten Greve, Paris, France
2020  Francisco Carolinum, Austria
2020  Camara Oscura, Spain
2019  Roger Ballen Bilder & Bretter, Berlin, Germany
2019  Center of Photography, Montevideo, Uruguay
2019  Centrale for Contemporary Art, Brussels, Belgium
2019  Galleria Carla Sozzani, Milan, Italy
2019  Galerija Fotogafija, Slovenija
2019  Halle St Pierre, Paris, France
2019  Karsten Greve, Paris, France
2019  Latvian Museum of Photography, Latvia
2018  ARTCO Gallery, Aachen – Alter Ego
2018  Center of Photography, Montevideo, Uruguay
2018  Centro Cultural Kavlin, Uruguay
2018  City Art Gallery, Plovdiv, Bulgaria
2018  El Centro de Extension Alfonso Lagos (CECAL UdeC), Chile
2018  Fahey/Klein Gallery, Los Angeles, United States
2018  Futuredome Le Dictateur, Milan, Italy
2018  Galeria Senda, Barcelona, Spain
2018  M. Contemporary, Sydney, Australia
2018  Modern Art Museum Gebre Kristos Desta Center, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
2018  Museu Fotografia Fortaleza, Brazil
2018  Museum of Fine Arts Ekaterinburg Foto Summer, Russia
2018  National Gallery, Sofia, Bulgaria
2018  Photo18 Zurich, Switzerland
2018  PH Photo Centre, Cape Town, South Africa
2018  School of the Photographic Arts, Ottawa, Canada
2018  Wiesbaden Biennale, Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden, Germany
2017  Akershus Kunstsenter, Lillestrom, Norway
2017  Arken Museum of Modern Art, Ishoj, Denmark
2017  Aura Gallery, Taipei, Taiwan
2017  Biennial Fotografica Bogota, Columbia
2017  Caixa Cultural Brasilia
2017  Centro Cultural La Cúpula, Mérida, Mexico
2017  The Centro Cultural Matucana 100, Santiago, Chile
2017  Daum Museum of Contemporary Art, Sedalia, United States
2017  Emon Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
2017  La ERRE Cultural Soace, Guatemala
2017  Flair Gallery, Arles, France
2017  Galeria Principal of the Caixa Cultural Brasilia, Brasil
2017  Galerie Alex Daniels – Reflex Amsterdam, The Netherlands
2017  Gallery La Cupula, Merida, Mexico
2017  Gallery Momo, Cape Town, South Africa
2017  Gamma Galeria, Guadalajara, Mexico
2017  Guandong Museum, China
2017  Guerrilla Zoo, London, UK
2017  Hamiltons Gallery – London, United Kingdom
2017  Jingdezhen Tao Xichuan Museum, Jiangxi, China
2017  John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota Florida, United States
2017  M97 Gallery. Shanghai, China
2017  Museo Marte, El Salvador
2017  Photomuseo National Museum of Photography, Bogota, Colombia
2017  Origins Centre Association, Johannesburg, South Africa
2017  Les Rencontres de la Photographie, Arles
2017  Saint Moritz Art Masters, Switzerland
2017  Stadtmuseum + Kunstsammlung Jena, Jena, Germany
2017  Tauranga Art Gallery, Tauranga, New Zealand
2017  Te Uru Waitakere Contemporary Gallery, Auckland, New Zealand
2017  Yu Deyao, China
2017  Zeitz MOCAA, Cape Town, South Africa
2016  Anzenberger Gallery, Handmade Show, Austria
2016  Aura Gallery, China
2016  Barbado Gallery, Lisboa, Portugal
2016  Carpentier Gallery, Berlin, Germany
2016  Central Academy of Fine Art Museum, Beijing
2016  Centro Fotografico Manuel Alvarez Bravo, Mexico
2016  City Gallery Palffy Palais, Bratislava, Slovakia
2016  Etherton Gallery, Tucson, United States
2016  Fototeca, Monterrey, Mexico
2016  Foto Museo de Cuatro Caminos, Mexico City
2016  Galleria Massimo Minini, Brescia, Italy
2016  Gallery Momo, Cape Town
2016  Gallery Momo, Johannesburg
2016  Hamilton Gallery, London, UK
2016  Hydra and Fotografia, Mexico
2016  Izzy Gallery, Toronto, Canada
2016  James Fuentes, New York City, United States
2016  João Barbado – Lisboa, Portugal
2016  Museo Arocena ,Torreón, Mexico
2016  Museum Dr Guislain Gent
2016  Museum of Contemporary Art, Istanbul Turkey
2016  Natalie and James Thompson Art Gallery, San Jose
2016  State University, San Jose, United States
2016  Photokina, Cologne, Germany
2016  SIPF Gillman Barracks, Singapore
2016  SNAP! Gallery, Orlando, Florida, United States
2016  Southeast Museum of Photography, Daytona, United States
2016  Sunaparanta, Goa Centre for the Arts, India
2016  Sydney College of the Arts, University of Sydney, Australia
2016  TEA Tenerife Espacio de las Artes, Canary Islands
2016  Von der Heydt-Kunsthalle, Wuppertal-Barmen
2016  Wei-Ling Contemporary, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
2016  Zemack Contemporary Art, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel
2015  Bogotá Photo Festival, Bogotá, Colombia
2015  CAFAM, Beijing, China
2015  Chazen Museum of Art, Wisconsin, United States
2015  David Krut Gallery, Johannesburg, South Africa
2015  Frigoriferi Milanesi, Milan, Italy
2015  Fried Gallery, Pretoria, South Africa
2015  Galerie Karsten Greve, Köln, Germany
2015  Galerie Rudolphe Janssen, Masks, Brussels, Belgium
2015  Galerie Senda, Barcelona, Spain
2015  Kafka House, Prague, Czech Republic
2015  Kyotographie, Kyoto, Japan
2015  La Fabrica, Madrid, Spain
2015  Montserrat, Barcelona, Spain
2015  Museu de Arte Contemporânea, Universidade de São Paulo, Brazil
2015  Museum of Image, Braga, Portugal
2015  Photoink, New Delhi, India
2015  Pori Art Museum, Pori , Finland
2015  Serlachius Museum, Mänttä, Finland
2014  Atlas Sztuki, Lodz, Poland
2014  Christophe Guye Galerie, Zurich, Switzerland
2014  Circa Gallery, Johannesburg
2014  Festival de la Luz, Buenos Aires
2014  Fotografiska, Stockholm, Sweden
2014  Galerie Karsten Greve, Paris, France
2014  Galerie Karsten Greve, One Man Show “Asylum of the Birds”, Paris Photo, France
2014  Kulungwana, Maputo, Mozambique
2014  Kunst- und Kulturzentrum Monschau, Aachen, Deutschland
2014  Moscow Media Centre, Moscow Russia
2014  Musée Nicéphore Niépce, Chalon-sur-Saône, France
2014  Museo d’Arte Contemporanea di Roma, Rome, Italy
2014  Museu Oscar Niemeyer, Brazil
2014  Museum Dr. Guislain, Gent, Belgium
2014  Museum Villa Stuck, Munich, Germany
2014  Oliewenhuis Art Museum, Bloemfontein, South Africa
2014  Paris Photo, Grand Palais, Paris, France
2013  Belfast Photo Festival, Belfast, Northern Island
2013  Galerie Clairefontaine, Luxembourg
2013  Johannesburg Art Fair, South Africa
2013  Maison De L’Image Documentaire, The CèTávoiR Association, Paris, France
2013  Museum of Old and New, Hobart Australia
2013  Nikolaj Copenhagen Contemporary Art Center, Denmark
2013  Photoink, New Delhi, India
2013  Pingao International Photography Festival, China
2013  Palm Springs Art Museum, California, USA
2013  Smithsonian National Museum of African Art, Washington DC, USA
2013  Westlicht, Schauplatz fur Fotografie, Vienna, Austria
2012  Erdmann Contemporary & the Photographers Gallery za, Cape Town, South Africa
2012  Guate Festival, Guatemala de la Asunción, Guatemala
2012  Kleinschmidt Fine Photographs, Wiesbaden, Germany
2012  Kunstalle, Vienna, Austria
2012  Manchester Art Museum, England
2012  Marta Herford Museum, Herford, Germany
2012  Musee de l Elysee, Lausanne Switzerland
2012  Museu de Arte Moderna, Rio de Janiero, Brazil
2012  Northwest University Museum, Potchestroom, South Africa
2012  Novosibirsk Art Museum, Russia
2012  Rosphoto, St. Pieterburg, Russia
2012  Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Israel
2011  Angkor Photo Festival, Cambodia
2011  Fahey Klein, Los Angles, California
2011  Fondazione Terre Medicee, Seravezza, Italy
2011  Galerie Alex Daniels – Reflex Amsterdam, The Netherlands
2011  Galleri Tom Christoffersen, Copenhagen, Denmark
2011  Mannheim Ludwigshafen Heidelberg, Germany
2011  Le Mois de la Photo à Montréal, Canada
2011  Museum Het Domein, Sittard, Netherlands
2011  Omsk Museum, Russia
2011  Sammlung Prinzhorn, Outland and Shadow Chamber, Heidelberg, Germany
2010  Bozar, Brussels
2010  Comune di Arco/Galleria Civica, Italy
2010  Centro de Arte la Regenta, Las Palmas, Spain
2010  Festival of Photography of Savignano, Italy
2010  Gallery Photographer RU, Moscow, Russia
2010  Galerie Sabine Knust, Munich, Germany
2010  Galeria Max Estrella
2010  Galeria Senda. Barcelona, Spain
2010  Galerie Kamel Mennour, Paris, France
2010  George Eastman House, Rochester, USA
2010  Iziko South African National Gallery, Cape Town, South Africa
2010  Jackson Fine Art, Atlanta, USA
2010  Lismore Regional Gallery, Australia
2010  Photonet Galerie, Wiesbaden, Germany
2010  Rooke Gallery, Johannesburg, South Africa
2010  Sammlungsleiter Fotomuseum, Munich, Germany
2010  Stenersen Museum, Oslo
2010  Sydney Biennale, Australia
2010  University of the O.F.S., South Africa
2010  Ubuntu, Salzburg Austria
2010  Ubuntu, Berlin, Germany
2009  Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand
2009  Aura Gallery, Shanghai
2009  City Museum of Ljubljana, Slovenia
2009  Gagosian Gallery, New York, USA
2009  Galerie Wolfsen, Denmark
2009  Galerija Fotografija, Ljubljana, Slovenia
2009  Galleria Massimo Minini, Brescia, Italy
2009  Hamiltons Gallery, London, UK
2009  Johnen Gallery, Berlin, Germany
2009  Monash Gallery of Art, Melbourne, Australia
2009  National Library of Australia, Canberra
2009  Ontario College of Art & Design, Toronto, Ontario
2009  Triennale, Milan, Italy
2009  University of Johannesburg, South Africa
2009  University of Pretoria, South Africa
2009  University of the Orange Free State, South Africa
2008  AEREA / Christian Larsen, Stockholm, Sweden
2008  Art Gallery of Western Australia
2008  BWA Gallery, Katowice, Poland
2008  Galeria vanGuardia, Bilbao, Spain
2008  Hertzelia Artists Host Centre, Tel Aviv, Israel
2008  Omaggio a Federico Vender at Palazzo dei Panni of Arco Trento
2008  Su Palatu, Sardinia
2007  Aura Gallery, Hong Kong
2007  Clint Roenisch Gallery, Toronto, Canada
2007  Deichtorhallen, Hamburg
2007  Galerie Photonet, Wiesbaden. Germany
2007  Jackson Fine Art, Atlanta, USA
2007  Johannesburg Art Gallery, Johannesburg
2007  Robert Klein Gallery, Boston
2007  Trafo Gallery, Oslo, Norway
2007  Yours Gallery, Warsaw, Poland
2006  Atlanta College of Arts, USA
2006  Berlin Biennial, Berlin
2006  Biblioteque Nationale, Paris
2006  Christian Dam Gallery, Oslo, Norway
2006  Everard Read, Johannesburg, South Africa
2006  Fahey Klein Gallery, Los Angeles, USA
2006  Fotografisk Center, Copenhagen, Denmark
2006  Galeria Senda, Barcelona, Spain
2006  Galerie Johnen + Schöttle, Cologne
2006  Galerie Kamel Mennour, Paris, France
2006  Galerie Nicola von Senger, Zurich, Switzerland
2006  Guido Costa Projects, Torino, Italy
2006  Museum voor Fotografie, Antwerp
2006  National Arts Festival, South Africa
2006  Oliewenhuis Art Museum, Bloem., South Africa
2006  Photographer’s Gallery, Cape Town, South Africa
2006  Sasol Museum, Stellenbosch, South Africa
2006  Stills Gallery, Sydney, Australia
2006  Xavier Hufkens, Brussels, Belgium
2005  Aura Gallery, Shanghai
2005  Frans Hals Museum, Haarlem
2005  Durban Art Gallery, South Africa
2005  Reflex Gallery, Amsterdam
2005  Gagosian Gallery, New York
2004  Berkeley Art Museum, California
2004  Le Chateau d’ eau a Toulouse
2004  State Museum of Russia, St. Petersburg
2003  Galerie Mennour, Paris
2003  Galleria Carla Sozzani, Italy
2002  Centro Cultural de Maia, O’Porto
2002  Gallery of Photography, Dublin
2002  Galleria D’arte Moderna, Bologna, Italy
2002  Gagosian Gallery, New York
2002  Gagosian Gallery, Los Angeles
2002  Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego
2002  Musee Nicephore Niepce
2002  Museo Nazionalle Italy, Brescia
2002  Museet for Fotokunst, Odense
2002  Nuku Gallery, Oulu
2002  Sala Rekalde, Bilbao
2001  Association for Visual Arts, Cape Town
2001  Encontros da imagem, Braga, Portugal
2001  Fotoforum, Frankfurt
2001  Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg
2001  Hasselblad Center, Gutenberg
2001  International Photo Festival Herten
2001  Kicken Gallery, Berlin
2001  Krefelder Kunstmuseen, Krefeld
2001  Mateo Inurria, Cordoba
2001  PhotoEspana, Madrid
2001  Printemps de Septembre a Toulouse
2001  Rupertinum, Salzburg
2001  Shine Gallery, London
2001  Wurttembergischer Kunstverein, Stuttgart
2000  Museum of Photography, Athens
2000  Noordelicht, Amsterdam
2000  Royal Theatre of Namur, Belgium
2000  Sani Festival, Greece
2000  Thessaloniki, Month of Photography
1999  Fait & Cause, Paris
1999  Melkweg, Amsterdam
1999  Month of Photography, Bratislava
1999  Month of Photography, Cape Town
1998  Kunsthaus, Zürich
1998  Kunstal Museum, Rotterdam
1998  Lumo ’98
1996  Eindhoven Photographic Festival
1996  Tarranto Gallery, New York City
1995  Arles Photographic Festival, Arles
1995  Royal Festival Hall/Hayward, London
1994  Afrikaner Museum, Johannesburg
1994  Michaelis Collection, Cape Town
1986  Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg
1986  Pretoria Art Museum, Pretoria
1986  Shell Gallery, Cape Town
1982  Market Theatre, Johannesburg
1981  Centre for Photography, Denve