"Everything is art. Everything is politics." — Ai Weiwei
Academic profile
My research examines how visual culture functions as a tool of power, resistance and identity-making within specific geographies and their diasporas. I explore how artists navigate tensions between state control, decolonisation and autonomy, and how art operates as both a mirror and challenger to political systems.
OVERVIEW
- Researcher and educator specialising in global contemporary art, with a focus on Central Asian visual culture and diaspora.
- Research explores post-Soviet decolonisation, power, gender, and ecological degradation in Central Asia.
- Additional expertise in the arts and architecture of the Islamic world (7th century to present) and modern and contemporary art movements globally.
- Adopts an interdisciplinary research approach combining art history with politics, gender studies, and ecology.
- Fieldwork and research experience in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, the United States (Los Angeles, New York, Puerto Rico), and South Korea.
- Four years of higher education teaching experience (SOAS) with an Associate Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy (AFHEA).
- Published researcher with contributions to Central Asian Survey, Routledge, University of Pittsburgh Press, and experienced as a peer reviewer.
- Certified in research integrity and intercultural methodologies; experienced in curriculum design, inclusive pedagogy, and innovative teaching strategies.
education
PhD Art History & Archaeology
SOAS University of London / London
2015 – 2022
Thesis: Contesting Convention: Contemporary Art within the Political Landscape of Post-Soviet Central Asia
MA Contemporary Art
Sotheby’s Institute of Art / London
2011 – 2013
Thesis: Performing in the Interstice of Mutating Regimes: Erbossyn Meldibekov and the Rhetoric of Representation
BFA with an Emphasis in Art History, Theory & Criticism
The School of the Art Institute of Chicago / Chicago
2004 – 2007
publications
Ploskonka, Kasia. Contesting Convention: The Politics of Art in Contemporary Central Asia (book manuscript, under discussion, publication date TBC).
Ploskonka, Kasia. Diversity in Art Fund Awards: A Review of Artists, Institutions and Regions. Internal Report, Art Fund UK, 2025.
Ploskonka, Kasia. ‘Contesting Convention: Agency in Dushanbe’s Contemporary Art Scene’. In Tiesenhausen, Aliya de, ed. The Social Role of Art and Culture in Central Asia. London: Routledge, 2022: 97-113. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003259909.
Montgomery, David, ed. Central Asia: Context for Understanding. Pittsburgh, Pa.: University of Pittsburgh Press, 2022. (Kasia Ploskonka photography contributor).
Ploskonka, Kasia. ‘Contesting Convention: Agency in Dushanbe’s Contemporary Art Scene’. Central Asian Survey 40, no. 1 (2 January 2021): 97–112. https://doi.org/10.1080/02634937.2020.1865270.
Ploskonka, Kasia. ‘Post-Soviet Migration in Central Asia through the Lens of Contemporary Art.’ Nomadic Art Camp 2017: Stocktaking for Broader Promotion of Sustainable Management of Mountain Resources and Landscapes, vol. 2017 (2018): 46–48.
Ploskonka, Kasia. ‘Post-Soviet Migration in Central Asia through the Lens of Contemporary Art.’ Nomadic Art Camp 2017: Stocktaking for Broader Promotion of Sustainable Management of Mountain Resources and Landscapes, vol. 2017 (2018): 46–48.
Ploskonka, Kasia. ‘Mankurtism, Monuments and Marketing: Identity and Power in Post-Soviet Contemporary Art of Central Asia.’ The SOAS Journal of Postgraduate Research, vol. 9 (2015–16): 47–64.
Central Eurasian Studies Society's (CESS) first-ever photo contest under the title: “The Researcher and His/Her Fieldwork in Central Eurasia“. Scholars and journalists present photos that reflect on the relationship between the researcher and the object of research and illuminate the different faces of fieldwork: https://voicesoncentralasia.org/the-researcher-and-his-her-fieldwork-in-central-eurasia-photo-gallery/
CAPture Photo Contest Winner for images of 'Central Asia in Focus': https://centralasiaprogram.org/capture-photo-contest-central-asia-in-focus
conferences
The Seventh Annual Doctoral Research Workshop on Central Asia | Art and Culture – Actors or Representatives? Senate House, London (26 Jan 2019)
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Central Asia, Middle East, Contemporary Art, Art & Agency, Power, Nation building, Art and Politics, Activism and Visual Culture
AFFILIATIONS
SOAS University of London, History of Art & Archaeology
Central Eurasian Studies Society (CESS)
Association for Art History (AAH)
ACADEMIC CV
Fieldwork photography
These photographs were taken during my groundwork throughout Central Asia from 2018 to 2019.