Who Am I

Dijana Muminovic proudly calls herself Bosnian-American documentary photographer, as her time is always divided between the two continents. Dijana is a Western Kentucky University and Ohio University, alumni. Both of these places have shaped her to become an award-winning photojournalist.

“I have always been driven to create. Because of that, I felt the need to go back to Bosnia after my Master’s program, and open School of Photography–the only photo program in Bosnia-Herzegovina that offers photo classes to all community members regardless of age. My pride is seeing a mixture of generations come to class, 7 being the youngest and 78 the oldest. A grandma with her granddaughter, mother with her her two daughters, high school kids, university students, those who’ve retired and who find peace in photography, and the youth who see future in it. For the past three years, this program has been one of my biggest achievements.”

www.skolafotografije.org

Dijana’s other work in the past fifteen years was focused on stories of immigration, human rights, the aftermath and people of BiH. Her first solo exhibition and first public speech were at US Congress building in 2010. Since, Dijana’s work was exhibited at Italian Senate, Rich Mix London, England, WKU, City Museum of Zenica, and New York. One of the photos Dijana took in 2009, is now on the book cover of “Our Bodies, Their Battlefields”, by Christina Lamb (co-author of “I am Malala”).

In 2015, Dijana documented Syrian refugees, another remarkable experience that resulted becoming a guest speaker on “War, Peace and Photography”, at various universities including Allegheny College, Ohio University, University of South Florida, Western Kentucky University..Then in 2020, Dijana was a TEDx speaker in Bosnia, speaking on Photography and Human Connections. (TEDx story in English).

While completing Master’s in Visual Communication at OU, Dijana mentored at the Athens Photographic Project, teaching people who use photography to help in their mental health recovery. Similar program is planned in Zenica, Bosnia, as well as photography for the people with hearing impairments.

In 2018, Dijana was a Project Committee of the Bosnia Oral History during The International Year of Bosnia at WKU, where an academic year was dedicated to BiH. Eleven professors visited Bosnia that year, including Dijana’s former professor Mr. Kenney. In 2019, professor and a peacemaker, Dr. Hiba from University of South Florida, whom Dijana only met once while speaking to his class, visited Bosnia with his wife, Jeanne Tavers, professor at the School of Theatre&Dance. Jeanne conducted/choreographed Dijana’s personal story I’m a refugee (minute 30:30).

“Though I have become to know many homes on Earth, but whenever someone familiar visits Bosnia, I consider it as one of my greatest gifts in life, for this is the home I feel I most belong to.”

Dijana is currently employed in Medica Zenica, women’s NGO that specializes in protecting women and girls, and most recently she spent time documenting Ukrainian women who arrived to Medjugorje.

• Founder and director of School of Photography in Zenica.
• Current Public Relations specialist at Medica Zenica.
• Worked as a medical photographer for Sanela Diana Jenkins Foundation.
• Organized the judging of the National Press Photographer Association Best of Photojournalism (NPPA BOP) at OU.
• Awarded by the Alexia Foundation, Photophilanthropy, NPPA.
• Received many grants including three from the Kentucky Foundation for Women: 2009, 2010, 2020.