Kiana Bates
Kiana is a lens-based artist whose intimate work centers on themes of legacy, heritage, and sacrifice. Through evocative portraits, still lifes, and documentary-style images, she honors her Japanese grandmother’s profound love, resilience, and quiet sacrifices as an immigrant. As the daughter of an immigrant, Kiana feels a deep obligation to preserve cultural memory and express gratitude for the perseverance of those who came before. Her photographs blend personal storytelling with universal reflections on family, identity, and intergenerational bonds, creating tender visual tributes that bridge past and present.
In 2022, she earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Photography from Brigham Young University. Kiana is currently pursuing a graduate degree in studio art from the University of Notre Dame.
Contact
Email: kianatbates@gmail.com
Also available on Instagram
CV
Exhibitions
2026 | Cultivate, Solarium Show, University of Notre Dame, IN
2025 | Cultivate, New Faces Exhibition, University of Notre Dame, IN
2024 | American Dream, Reciprocity: Expanding Ideas of Community, SPE W/SW Fall Conference, Ogden, UT
2021 | The Taguchi Legacy, BF Larsen Gallery, Provo, UT
Selected Awards & Funds
2026 | Best Artist Award, Solarium Show, University of Notre Dame
2026 | Liu Institute for Asia and Asian Studies Grant
2022 | BYU Design Department Commencement Speaker
2022 | BYU Dean of Students Photography Contest Honorable Mention
2021 | BYU Dean of Students Photography Contest First Place Winner
2021 | BYU Department of Design Experiential Learning Grant A
2021 | BYU Department of Design Experiential Learning Grant B
2021 | BYU Design Department Talent Award
2020 | BYU Department of Design Experiential Learning Grant
2020 | BYU Design Department Talent Award
2020 | BYU College of Fine Arts Deans List
Print Publications
2025 | Utah Valley Bride Magazine
2024 | Utah Bride and Groom Magazine
2023 | Cooking with Baachan
2023 | TouchéWorld Magazine
2023 | Utah Valley Bride Magazine
2022 | Utah Valley Bride Magazine
2022 | Work and Wonder Magazine
Bibliography
2024 | “Artist Spotlight: Kiana Bates”, By Hannah Tuckfield, Pictureline Blog, November 2024
2024 | “Kiana Bates, Fencing as an Art”, NCAA Fencing Magazine, Issue 2, October 2024
2024 | “Department of Design Alum Kiana Bates Embraces Her Cultural and Religious Heritage Through Tintype Photography”, By Alex Marshall Hatch, BYU College of Fine Arts and Communications, July 2024
2022 | “Photography Grad Kiana Bates on Telling Stories Through Photography”, BYU College of Fine Arts and Communications, 2022
Teaching Experience
Teaching Assistant, University of Notre Dame | August 2025 - Present
Adjunct Faculty, Brigham Young University | August 2023 - May 2025