MiaMya Dawson

MiaMya Dawson (b.1984) is an artist based in the Bay Area. Her ceramics, drawings, paintings, and artist books explore themes related to nature, memory, and music.

Dawson joined NIAD Art Center in 2011 and has since taken on a leadership role, facilitating weekly movement sessions for community members in the Virtual Studio and the 23rd Street Studio. Working in close collaboration with studio staff and colleagues, Dawson guides the group through adaptive exercises, meditations, and interpretive dance.

The nuances of movement are essential to her painted compositions as well. Using a range of marks to convey her “emotional state,” she builds up each surface with layers of pastel, ink, graphite, and watercolor. The resulting scenes represent interior and exterior landscapes, and range from serene seas to wild tempests. 

Dawson’s sculptures and works on paper have been highlighted in The Art of the African Diaspora 2024 at the Richmond Art Center, Into the Brightness at the OMCA, and in a solo exhibition at Yali’s Cafe in Berkeley, CA.