Irene Antonia Diane Reece (b. 1993, Houston, US) identifies as a contemporary artist and visual activist. She earned her BFA in Photography and Digital Media (Houston, TX) and MFA in Photography and Image-making (Paris, France).
Reece's work explores themes such as racial identity, the African diaspora, social injustice, family histories, re-memory, and mental and community health. Her background in photography and image-making has influenced her art practice, which now critically examines the tools used in art creation. Reece's approach seeks to decentralise whiteness, deconstruct the violence associated with the camera, protect Black archives, and celebrate the complexities of Black identities.
Solo exhibitions include: The Beauty of It All, Women and Their Work, Austin, US (2025); Billie-James, Round 55: Drive-by, Project Row Houses, Houston, US (2023); Home-goings, Galveston Art Center, Galveston, US (2021).
Group exhibitions include: Con(tra) El Archivo, Filter Photo, Chicago, US (2024); Ephemeral Visits, FLATS, Houston, US (2024); chapter 3 of transfeminisms, Mimosa House, London, UK (2024); “This Way”, Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, Houston, US (2023); Who lit the fire?, curated by Anita N. Bateman, Ph.D., Contemporary Arts Center New Orleans, New Orleans, US (2023); Against Wind and Tide curated by Christine Eyene, Centre les Étoiles de Jamaa El Fna, Marrakech, Morocco (2023); The Bluest Monday, Beeldend Gesproken, Amsterdam, Netherlands (2023); Photo Vogue Festival: NFT X Voice Residency, BASE MILANO, Milan, Italy (2022); Love is House That Even Death Can’t Knock Down, Lawndale Art Center, Houston, US (2022); Dak’Art, La Biennale de Dakar, Maison de la Culture Douta Seck, Dakar, Sénégal (2022); Interference - Hessel Museum of Art, Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson, US (2022); Openwalls Arles - a collaboration between Galerie Huit Arles and 1854 Media, Arles, France (2021); Texas Biennial: A New Landscape, A Possible Horizon, McNay Art Museum, San Antonio, US (2021).
Her work has been featured in The New York Times, ARTnews and Lenscratch. Reece is a 2021 recipient of the Black Rock Senegal Residency in Dakar, Senegal.
