YeLa An was born in Seoul, South Korea, on March 14, 1987. She is currently based in Vienna, Austria, where she completed both a Ph.D. in Philosophy and a program in Post-Conceptual Art Practices under the supervision of Univ.-Prof. Dr. phil. Marina Gržinić at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna.
She was the recipient of the START scholarship from the Austrian Federal Ministry for Arts, Culture, Civil Service and Sport (BMKÖS), and the ArtStart scholarship from the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna. In addition, she received second prize in the 2021 Open Call for Young Photographers organized by the Photon – Centre for Contemporary Photography in Ljubljana. Her artworks have been selected for the permanent collections of the Kupferstichkabinett at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, the Cultural Department of Vienna (MA7), and the BMKÖS.
Educational Background:
2025 — Ph.D. in Philosophy, supervised by Univ.-Prof. Dr. phil. Marina Gržinić, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, Austria
2017 — Magister degree in Post-Conceptual Art Practices, supervised by Univ.-Prof. Dr. phil. Marina Gržinić, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, Austria
Scholarships and Funding:
2024 — Project funding, Cultural Department of Vienna (MA7), Austria
2022–2023 — START scholarship, Photography 2022, Austrian Federal Ministry for Arts, Culture, Civil Service and Sport (BMKÖS)
2022 — Short-term grant abroad, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, Austria
2022 — Project funding, Austrian Federal Ministry for Arts, Culture, Civil Service and Sport (BMKÖS)
2021 — Second prize, Different Worlds 2021: 9th Open Call for Young Photographers, Photon – Centre for Contemporary Photography, Ljubljana, Slovenia
2021 — Project funding, Austrian Federal Ministry for Arts, Culture, Civil Service and Sport (BMKÖS)
2021 — Young Artist Funding (Jungkünstlerinnenförderung*), Bildrecht, Austria
2020 — Working scholarship (Arbeitsstipendium), Cultural Department of Vienna (MA7), Austria
2018–2019 — ArtStart scholarship, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, Austria
2016 — Project funding, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, Austria
Public Collections:
2024 — Cultural Department of Vienna (MA7), Austria
2022 — Austrian Federal Ministry for Arts, Culture, Civil Service and Sport (BMKÖS)
2018 — Kupferstichkabinett, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, Austria
Artist Residency Programs:
2022 — St. Virgil, Salzburg, Austria
2021 — thealit – Frauen.Kultur.Labor, Bremen, Germany
She was the recipient of the START scholarship from the Austrian Federal Ministry for Arts, Culture, Civil Service and Sport (BMKÖS), and the ArtStart scholarship from the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna. In addition, she received second prize in the 2021 Open Call for Young Photographers organized by the Photon – Centre for Contemporary Photography in Ljubljana. Her artworks have been selected for the permanent collections of the Kupferstichkabinett at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, the Cultural Department of Vienna (MA7), and the BMKÖS.
Educational Background:
2025 — Ph.D. in Philosophy, supervised by Univ.-Prof. Dr. phil. Marina Gržinić, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, Austria
2017 — Magister degree in Post-Conceptual Art Practices, supervised by Univ.-Prof. Dr. phil. Marina Gržinić, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, Austria
Scholarships and Funding:
2024 — Project funding, Cultural Department of Vienna (MA7), Austria
2022–2023 — START scholarship, Photography 2022, Austrian Federal Ministry for Arts, Culture, Civil Service and Sport (BMKÖS)
2022 — Short-term grant abroad, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, Austria
2022 — Project funding, Austrian Federal Ministry for Arts, Culture, Civil Service and Sport (BMKÖS)
2021 — Second prize, Different Worlds 2021: 9th Open Call for Young Photographers, Photon – Centre for Contemporary Photography, Ljubljana, Slovenia
2021 — Project funding, Austrian Federal Ministry for Arts, Culture, Civil Service and Sport (BMKÖS)
2021 — Young Artist Funding (Jungkünstlerinnenförderung*), Bildrecht, Austria
2020 — Working scholarship (Arbeitsstipendium), Cultural Department of Vienna (MA7), Austria
2018–2019 — ArtStart scholarship, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, Austria
2016 — Project funding, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, Austria
Public Collections:
2024 — Cultural Department of Vienna (MA7), Austria
2022 — Austrian Federal Ministry for Arts, Culture, Civil Service and Sport (BMKÖS)
2018 — Kupferstichkabinett, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, Austria
Artist Residency Programs:
2022 — St. Virgil, Salzburg, Austria
2021 — thealit – Frauen.Kultur.Labor, Bremen, Germany