About
Artist bio
Sian Atkins creates bold politically-themed paintings informed by abstract expressionism and neo-expressionism, art brut, graffiti aesthetic, and artivism. Employing a mixed technique - including acrylic paint and spray paint, oil and soft pastels, and marker pens - the artist applies an eclectic array of expressive marks to the canvas, balancing repetition with diversity in size, shape, texture, and emotional intensity. Text, symbols, and word play are central to her practice, and combined with a vivid, often neon palette, the results are layered, visually-striking, and thought-provoking.
Atkins explores identity politics against the contemporary backdrop of intensifying political polarisation and the systemic crises of late-stage capitalism. Her work interrogates the rise of right-wing ‘‘anti-woke’’ backlash, outlines obstacles faced on the left, and looks to potentials for merging concern with identity-based oppression and collective class consciousness. Grounded in her perspective as a disabled, queer, leftist, woman, the artwork reflects a particular personal and political position, and yet the artist is most interested in drawing connections outwards between marginalised experiences and the wider population, with a view to possibilities for building solidarity and universality across divides, transcending difference without erasing it.
Born in 1988 in Cheltenham, England, the artist completed her undergraduate (in geography) at Durham University and masters degree (in political economy) at the University of London between 2008-2014, and currently lives and works in Cardiff, Wales. She has exhibited in group shows in Cardiff, Bristol, and Sheffield, is a recipient of the Eaton Fund grant for visual artists, and recently made the Extended Longlist of the Jacksons Art Prize 2026.
