Jean Barth’s art practice is grounded in the subject of trans self-representation. At the core of her creative methodology is 3D world-building which is then assembled into a tableau drawing on portraiture's history and broader cultural narratives to begin forming compositions. These compositions then become oil paintings and video works.
Jean Barth


















Barth was the recipient of the Copyright Agency Partnerships (CAP) commission with the Institute of Modern Art (IMA), leading to her exhibition The Clumped Spirit, at the IMA in late 2024. Barth’s solo exhibitions include Earthbound (2023) and The Placeholder, Milani Gallery, Brisbane/Meanjin (2021). Her group exhibitions include Image Economies, Monash University of Art, Melbourne (2025); Inner Sanctum, Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art, Art Gallery of South Australia (2024); Embodied Knowledge: Contemporary Queensland Art, Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art, Brisbane/Meanjin (2021); and New Woman, Museum of Brisbane, Brisbane/Meanjin (2019). Her work is in the collections of the National Gallery of Australia, Kamberri/Canberra; Monash University Museum of Art, Naarm/Melbourne; and Griffith University Art Museum, Meanjin/Brisbane.
Solo Exhibitions
2026
- Screen Tests, Milani Gallery, Brisbane
2025
- The Clumped Spirit, UNSW Galleries, Sydney
2024
- The Clumped Spirit, Institute of Modern Art (IMA)
2023
- Earthbound, Milani Gallery, Brisbane
2021
- The Placeholder, Milani Gallery, Brisbane
2019
- Screen Tests, Milani Gallery CARPARK, Brisbane
2015
- Otonaroid, Woolloongabba Art Gallery, Brisbane
Selected Group Exhibitions
2026
- The shape of us: recent acquisitions, Potter Museum of Art Project Gallery, Melbourne
2025
- Unbecoming, La Trobe Art Institute, Victoria
- 15 Artists, Redcliffe Art Gallery, Moreton Bay
- Image Economies, Monash University Museum of Art (MUMA), Melbourne
- A gestural drift, Artbank Sydney
- Collecting the Future: 50 Years of the Griffith University Art Collection, Griffith University Art Museum, Brisbane
- Dummies & Doppelgängers, Christchurch Art Gallery - Te Puna O Waiwehtū, Christchurch
2024
- Inner Sanctum, Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art, Art Gallery of South Australia
- View from a Body, e-flux screening room, Brooklyn
- View from a Body: Symposium on Moving Image Culture and Embodied Affect (screening as part of symposium), Buxton Contemporary, Melbourne
2022
- Embodied Knowledge, Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane
2020
- 2020 Melbourne Art Fair, Online Viewing Room
2019
- New Woman, Museum of Brisbane, Brisbane
- IMA 2019 Winter Gala, The Calile Hotel, Brisbane
2018
- Scroll, Stable Art Space, Brisbane
- IMA 2018 Annual Gala, Institute of Modern Art, Brisbane
- Assuming a Surface, Outerspace, Brisbane
2016
- Honours Graduate Exhibition, Pop Gallery, Brisbane
- at Metro Arts, Brisbane
- Crossexions, Metro Arts, Brisbane, and The Cross Art Projects, Sydney
- The Redlands Konica Minolta Art Prize, NAS Gallery, Darlinghurst
- Dirty Blonde, Spiro Grace Art Rooms, Brisbane
2015
- Churchie Emerging Art Prize, Queensland University Art Gallery, Brisbane
2014
- Odd Home, The Hold Art Space, Brisbane
Residencies
2022–2023
- Metro Arts Visual Arts Pathfinders Program, Brisbane, June 2022 - June 2023
2017–2018
- Studio Residency, Outerspace, Brisbane, November 2017- February 2018
2016
- Studio Residency, Spiro Grace Art Rooms, Brisbane
Selected Publications
- Atkinson, S., Spiro, P., Grace, R., Martin-Chew, L. and Hine, M., 2020. New Woman: Celebrating Brisbane Women Artists Over The Past 100 Years. Brisbane: MoB
Selected Awards
2016
- Finalist, Redlands Konica Minolta Art Prize
2015
- Finalist, Churchie Emerging Art Prize
2014
- Oxlades Art Essentials Painting Award
2011
-
Creative Generation Excellence Award in Visual Art and Design
Collections
- Griffith University Museum of Art, Brisbane
- Monash University Museum of Art, Melbourne
- National Gallery of Australia, Canberra
- Private Collections
- Victoria and Albert Museum, London
- Home Of The Arts (HOTA), Gold Coast
- University of Melbourne
- Artbank
- Queensland Art Gallery/ Gallery of Modern Art (QAGOMA)
Exhibitions
Off-site Exhibitions
Feb 19 – May 2, 2026Jean Barth‘The shape of us: recent acquisitions’Potter Museum of Art Project Gallery
May 29 – Aug 16, 2025various artists‘Collecting the Future: 50 Years of the Griffith University Art Collection’Griffith University Art Museum
May 22 – Aug 10, 2025Jean Barth‘Unbecoming’La Trobe Art Institute








