I am a Mexican, transdisciplinary artist. Since 1992 I have developed sustainable art-centered projects that integrate collaborative and participatory work to address social justice and the environment. As a Mexican-born, New York-based artist, it is my belief that a shared artistic and social practice can serve as a platform on which we connect, learn, exchange, create, and transcend borders in order to activate our sense of belonging to our local and global community. My work seeks to further the expectations of socially-engaged art by involving collaborators such as archives, scientists, activists, musicians, street dancers, and artisans to create works that operate both inside and outside of the art world. Since 2001 I began to work with stilt dancers in Trinidad and Tobago, and since 2007 have consistently collaborated with the Brooklyn Jumbies, and in 2012 with the Zancudos de Zaachila from Oaxaca, Mexico. The resulting interventions combine character and narrative development with numerous collaborators in addition to textile arts, sculpture, dance, masking, music, procession, improvisation, ritual, and protest.
Bio
Born in Mexico City, Laura Anderson Barbata is a transdisciplinary artist, who lives and works in New York and Mexico City. Since 1992 she has worked primarily in the social realm, and has initiated projects in the Venezuelan Amazon, Trinidad and Tobago, Mexico, Norway, and the United States. Among them is her ongoing project The Repatriation of Julia Pastrana, begun in 2005, which resulted in the removal of Pastrana’s body from the Schreiner Collection in Oslo and its successful repatriation and burial in Sinaloa, Mexico, Pastrana’s birth state. The project continues with upcoming publications, zines, exhibitions, and performances.
Anderson Barbata is also known for her project Transcommunality (2001–ongoing), working with stilt walkers, artists, and artisans from Mexico, New York, and the Caribbean. This project has been presented at various museums, schools, and other venues as exhibitions and ¨Interventions¨, among them the Museum of Modern Art, New York; the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, Texas; BRIC Arts | Media House, Brooklyn; Rutgers University; United Nations Plaza, New York; University of Wisconsin, Madison; Museo Textil de Oaxaca, México; Museo de la Ciudad de México; MUCA Roma, UNAM, Mexico City; the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and Newcomb Art Museum, New Orleans.
Her work is in various private and public collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; el Museo de Arte Moderno, México D.F.; Landesbank Baden-Württemberg Gallery, Stuttgart, Germany; Fundación Cisneros; Museo Carrillo Gil, México; Museo Universitario Arte Contemporáneo MUAC, DGAV-UNAM. Mexico City; Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego; Museum of Latin American Art MOLAA, Long Beach; USC Fisher Museum of Art; Museo Jaureguía, Navarra, Spain; Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary, among others.
Her work has been featured in numerous publications, including the New York Times, Sculpture Today (Phaidon Press), Kunstforum Germany, ARTnews, Art in America, ArtNexus, and 160 Años de Fotografía en México (INBA).
Anderson Barbata is a recipient of the Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center Artist in Residence, 2019; the Anonymous Was a Woman 2016 Award; Defense of Human Rights Award 2017 from the Instituto de Administración Pública de Tabasco, México; Honorary Fellow of LACIS (the Latin American, Caribbean, and Iberian Studies Program), University of Wisconsin, Madison; Fellow of the Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary TBA21 Academy; Miembro del Sistema Nacional de Creadores, México (2014-2017) and professor at the Escuela Nacional de Escultura, Pintura y Grabado La Esmeralda of the Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes from 2010 until 2015.
Awards/Grants/Honors (Selected):
2023/24 College Art Association, CAA. Board of Directors and VP for Diversity and Inclusion.
2023 FST STUDIOPROJECTS Fund Grant. New York
2022/23 Artist Fellow. National Arts Club, New York
2021 CAA VP for 2022 Annual Conference and Programs, Chicago-New York
City Artists Corps Grant From New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA)
2020-present The Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts. Studio Member. New York
2019 The Rockefeller Foundation. Arts and Literary Arts Residency. Bellagio, Italy
2018-present Board of Directors College Art Association, CAA
2017 Premio Mario Trujillo García: in Defense of Human Rights. Instituto de Administración Pública de Tabasco A.C.
2016 Anonymous Was A Woman 2016. Award Recipient
Estelle Lebowitz Endowed Visiting Artist in Residence Lectureship (2016- 17). The Center for Women in the Arts and Humanities, Rutgers University
Awarded Artist in Residence. Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston
2015 Fellow. TBA21 Contemporary Academy. Thyssen-Bornemisza Contemporary Art
Honorary Fellow, Latin American, Caribbean and Iberian Studies, LACIS. University of Wisconsin, Madison
Arts Institute Interdisciplinary Artist in Residence. University of Wisconsin, Madison
2014-17, 2013-10 Miembro del Sistema Nacional para Creadores. Fondo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes, CONACULTA, México
2013 Segundo Concurso de Fotografía Contemporánea de México. Fundación Mexicana de Cine y Artes, A.C., México
Selection Committee for Visual Arts Grants. Sistema Nacional de Creadores de Arte, FONCA-CONACULTA, México
2012 Awarded Residency. Interdisciplinary Arts department and Columbia College Chicago Center for Book and paper, Chicago, IL
2010 Robin Fund Awarded Residency. Center for Book & Paper and the Interdisciplinary Arts Department, Columbia College Chicago, IL
2005 1st Place School Design. Junior Carnival. National Carnival Commission, NCC. Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago
International Studio Programme. Awarded Residency. Office for Contemporary Art Norway. Oslo, Norway
2004 Artista en residencia. Fundación La Llama. Caracas, Venezuela
2002 The Charles A. and Anne Morrow Lindbergh Foundation Grant. Anoka, MN
Artist in Residence, Awarded Residency. CCA7, Caribbean Contemporary Arts, Trinidad and Tobago
Guest Designer. Amphibian Productions, Connelly Theatre, New York and TCU, TX
2005-1999 Miembro del Sistema Nacional para Creadores, Fondo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes, CONACULTA, México. 6-year grant
2000 Artist as Catalyst, Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation Grant, Rutgers Center for Innovative Print and Paper, Rutgers University. New Brunswick, NJ
Libro del Año, Co-editora e impresión de libro artesanal del proyecto Yanomami Owë Mamotima, Centro Nacional del Libro,
Ministerio de Educación. Caracas, Venezuela
International Artists’ Workshop Residency. Big River 2, CCA7, Caribbean Contemporary Arts. Trinidad and Tobago
Boréal Art/Nature Centre Residency. Canada Council of the Arts and Conseil des Arts et des Lettres du Québec. Québec, Canada
1999 Artist in Residence. Wave Hill, Bronx, NY
Mención Honorífica, IV Bienal Internacional Juguete Arte Objeto. Museo José Luis Cuevas, México DF
Mención de Honor, III Salón Internacional de Estandartes. Centro Cultural Tijuana, BC. México
1997 Primer Lugar, III Bienal Internacional Juguete Arte Objeto. Museo Jose Luis Cuevas, México City
1989 Premio de Adquisición, Sección Dibujo, Salón Nacional de Artes Plásticas.Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes, INBA, México City
1986 Premio de Adquisición, Sección Dibujo, Salón Nacional de Artes Plásticas. Galería del Auditorio Nacional, INBA, México City
Solo Exhibitions and Performances (selected):
2023 Laura Anderson Barbata. Singing Leaf. Marlborough Gallery. New York
Intervention: Cochinilla. Public performance in collaboration with the Brooklyn Jumbies and Natalie Romero Marx. Cuerpos, estéticas y educaci’on en América Latina:
encuentros, límites y nuevos rumbos. Columbia University, Teachers College, New York
2022 Intervention: Ocean Blues. Public performance for the Dallas Arts District. In collaboration with the Brooklyn Jumbies and Amphibian Stage Tad-Poles
2021 Origins. Laura Anderson Barbata and Sheroanawe Hakihiiwe. Armory Art Fair. Marlborough Gallery, New York
Intervention: Red. Public performance for CROSSROADS by Carrie Mae Weems at The Watermill Center. In collaboration with the Zulu Connection and Kameron Bryant
Intervention: Red. Public Street performance in collaboration with the Brooklyn Jumbies and Hook Arts Media. Red Hook Houses, Brooklyn and Midtown Manhattan, City Artost
Corps and the New York Foundation for the Arts, NYC.
Transcommunality. (Exhibition and public program). Newcomb Museum, Tulane University, New Orleans.
2020 Intervention: Indigo. Public street performance. MUCA Roma, México City. In collaboration with Chris Walker; UNAM Dance Department;
Los Diablos, Rebeldes del Capricho, Ometepec, Guerrero; Elizabeth Ross and Teatro Pro-Alterne
The Eye of the Beholder. Performance. The Feminist Art Project, Performing Resistance Day of Panels. CAA College Art Association, Chicago
2019 Intervención: Indigo. Exhibition. MUCA Roma, México City
The Eye of the Beholder. Residency and Performance. BRIClab, Brooklyn. Director: Tamilla Woodard, Digital Design: Katherine Freer,
Associate Director: Rebecca Martinez, Lighting Design: Stephan Arnold
The Future in Now and We are It. THE REACH Opening Festival Parade. Project by Carrie Mae Weems. Public street performance.
Laura Anderson Barbata in collaboration with the Brooklyn Jumbies. The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Washington, D.C.
2018 Intervención: Indigo. Exhibition. Museo Textil de Oaxaca, México
Intervention: Ocean Blues. Performance in collaboration with the Brooklyn Jumbies. Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston; DUMBO, Brooklyn, No Longer Empty in Brooklyn
The Eye of the Beholder. Performance work-in-progress. Amphibian Productions New Plays Development Residency; Fort Worth, Texas. Director: Tamilla Woodard, Digital Design: Katherine Freer
Tiempo Local: arte y activismos para una memoria fronteriza. La extraordinaria historia de Julia Pastrana. Exhibition.
Centro Cultural España. Santiago de Chile
2017 Ocean Calling. Performance in collaboration with Chris Walker, the Brooklyn Jumbies and Jarana Beat. United Nations Plaza, New York.
Commissioned by Thyssen-Bornemisza Contemporary TBA21 Academy, Vienna
Intervention: Raphael Red. Performance in collaboration with the Brooklyn Jumbies. Commissioned and performed Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston
Ocean Blue(s). Performance in Collaboration with the Brooklyn Jumbies. NTU Centre for Contemporary Art Singapore
La Extraordinaria Historia de Julia Pastrana. Performance Work-in-progress, in collaboration with Fem Appeal.
Columbia College Chicago and Rutgers University
2016-2012 Transcommunality. Laura Anderson Barbata: Collaborations Beyond Borders. Exhibition. Mary H. Dana Women Artist Series Galleries,
Rutgers University; Cornell Fine Arts Museum, Florida; Helen Louise Textile Collection Gallery, University of Wisconsin, Madison;
BRIC Art House, Brooklyn; Centro de las Artes, Monterrey, NL; Museo de la Ciudad de México; Museo Textil de Oaxaca, Mexico
What-Lives-Beneath. TBA21 The Current Convening. Performance in collaboration with Amina Blackwood-Meeks, Chris Walker, the Brooklyn Jumbies
and the National Dance Company of Jamaica. Kingston, Jamaica
2015 Intervention: Indigo. Public street performance in collaboration with Chris Walker, the Brooklyn Jumbies and Jarana Beat. Brooklyn, New York
2013 Harlem Art Factory Festival. Public street performance. Collaboration with the Brooklyn Jumbies. Harlem, New York
La Repatriación de Julia Pastrana. Exhibition. Festival Internacional Cervantino. Museo Iconográfico del Quijote, Guanajuato
2012 A Flower for Julia. An international call to send a flower to be placed on Julia´s grave the day of her burial in Mexico
2011 Intervention: Wall Street. Public street performance in collaboration with the Brooklyn Jumbies. Financial District, New York
Zancudos, Zanqueros en Zaachila. Public street performance in collaboration with the Brooklyn Jumbies and
los Zancudos de Zaachila, Oaxaca, México
2010 Among Tender Roots. Exhibition. Columbia College Chicago Center for Book and Paper Arts. Chicago, IL
2009 Jumbies Fort Worth! Performance and outreach program in collaboration with Brooklyn Jumbies and Amphibian Productions. Fort Worth, TX
2008 Jumbies!. Performance and outreach program in collaboration with the Brooklyn Jumbies and Amphibian Productions.
The Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, TX
2007 Jumbie Camp. Exhibition and street performance featuring the Brooklyn Jumbies and Stefan Falke. Galeria Ramis Barquet, New York
Jumbies. Performance for Board of Directors. MoMA, Museum of Modern Art New York
2006 Dos Vírgenes. Exhibition. Galería La Refaccionaria, México City
2004 Laura Anderson Barbata. Exhibition. Ramis Barquet Gallery, New York
Consuelo. Exhibition. St. John the Divine Cathedral, New York
2003 Kiscelli Múzeum Templomtere. Exhibition. Budapest, Hungary
LAB Work. Exhibition and outreach project. Inter Americas Gallery, Caribbean Contemporary Arts, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago
2002 Terra Incógnita. Proyecto: Intervenciones Sociales. Exhibition. Ex Teresa Arte Actual, México DF
2001 Fausto-El Espíritu de la Tierra-Ixbalanqué. Exhibition. Peter Herrmann Gallery, Berlin, Germany
Tours and Revolutions. Exhibition. Freedman Gallery, Albright College Center for the Arts, Reading, PA
En el Orden del Caos. Exhibition. Landesbank Baden-Württemberg Gallery. Stuttgart, Germany
1998 In The Order of Chaos. Exhibition. Austin Museum of Art. Austin, TX; Dieu Donné Papermill, New York
1997 No-tengo-quien-me-ayude-en-casa. Performance. Museo de Arte Contemporaneo de Monterrey, MARCO, México
1995 La piel de la tierra. Exhibition. Museo de Arte Moderno, INBA. México City
Group Exhibitions (selected):
2023 Chosen Memories. Contemporary Latin American Art from the Patricia Phelps de Cisneros Gift and Beyond. Museum of Modern Art MoMA, NY
Luchadoras, mujeres en la colección del MUAC. Casa de México en España, Madrid.
Rafael Montañez Ortiz: Una retrospectiva contextual. Museo Rufino Tamayo, México D.F
Off the Cloth. Part II. White Box, New York
2022 17th Istanbul Biennial. Müze Gazhane and Zeytinburnu Medicial Plants Garden, Istanbul. Supported by Fundación Jumex Arte Contemporáneo and Embassy of Mexico in
Ankara.
Raphael Montañez Ortiz: A contextual Retrospective. Museo del Barrio, New York.
VIII Bienal de Arte Contemporáneo. Fundación Once, Madrid
46: Artists´ Books From the Franklin Furnace Archive, 1976-2022. Online exhibition
Indelible Blue: Indigo Around the World. Albuquerque Museum of Art, Albuquerque, NM
Paisajes Fragmentados, 1975-1994. Un panorama sobre el arte mexicano. Museo de Arte Moderno, CDMX
(Re) Generando…Narrativas e imaginarios. Mujeres en diálogo. Museo Kaluz, México D.F. through 2023
2019 Portadores de Sentido. Arte contemporáneo en la Colección Patricia Phelps de Cisneros. Museo Amparo, Puebla
Paper/Print: American Hand Papermaking. 1960’s to Today. IPCNY, New York
2018 The Oceanic. NTU Centre for Contemporary Art Singapore.
2017 Revolution at Point Zero. Glass Curtain Gallery, Columbia College Chicago
Pulp as Portal: Socially Engaged Hand Papermaking. Center for Book Arts, New York; Salina Art Center, Kansas
Crafted Strangers. The Center for Craft, Creativity and Design, Asheville
2016 Material Cultures. BRIC Arts, Brooklyn, NY
Carnival and Masqerades in a Worldwide Perspective. Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen, and Afrika Museum, The Netherlands.
Day of the Dead. Concert in collaboration with Apparatjik, Concha Buika and Void. Bergen International Music Festival, Norway
Ejercicios exploratorios II. Creadoras contemporáneas en la colección MACG. Museo Alvar y Carrillo Gil, México City
2015 The Quixotic Days and Errant Nights of the Knight Errant Don Quijote. Character Design. Amphibian Stage Production, Fort Worth, TX
2014 Caribbean: Crossroads of the World. Perez Art Museum, Miami, FL; El Museo del Barrio, Queens Museum of Art, Studio Museum Harlem, NY
Social Paper: Hand Papermaking in the Context of Socially Engaged Art.
Center for Book and Paper Arts, Columbia College Chicago
FOCO14. Festival de las Artes ARC, Coquimbo, Chile
Mujeres en el MAM. Museo de Arte Moderno, México D.F.
2012 X Bienal Monterrey, FEMSA. Museo de Arte Contemporaneo Monterrey, México
Invitational: Twenty Jurors. Woman Made Gallery, Chicago, Il
Second Generation. Columbia College Chicago, Chicago, Il
2011 Mujeres detrás de la lente. 100 años de creación fotográfica en México. CECUT, Tijuana, México
2010 AIO. Art in the Open Philadelphia. Schuykill Banks Park, Philadelphia, PA
Ciudadanas. Museo Universitario del Chopo in collaboration with the Museo de Mujeres Artistas Mexicanas (MUMA), Mexico City
2009 Hecho en casa: Una aproximación a las prácticas objetuales en el arte mexicano contemporáneo. Museo de Arte Moderno. México City
The Muhheakantuk in Focus, Wave Hill, Bronx, NY
The Art of Personal Adornment. Inez and Milton Shaver Gallery, The Dahl Arts Center, Rapid City, SD
2009-2007 Cardinal Points. Puntos Cardinales. A Survey of Contemporary Latino and Latin American Art from the Sprint Nextel Art Collection. Itinerant exhibition, USA
2006 Vestige/Vestigio. Colorado University Art Museum, Boulder, CO
Cruce de Miradas, Visiones de América Latina. Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes, México City
2005 Groβ un Quer. Peter Herrmann Gallery. Berlin, Germany
Images For a Better World. Selections from photographers of the Sprint Collection, Kansas City Museum, Kansas City, KS
Barents Art Triennial. Border Dialogues. Kirkenes, Norway
Bonds of Love. John Connelly Presents, New York
Espejos Invertidos: Arte Contemporáneo de México en los Estados Unidos. Instituto Cultural de México. Washington, DC
Mexican Report. Mex-Artes Museum, Austin, TX; Blue Star Contemporary Art Space, San Antonio, TX
2004 Altaring the Neighborhood. Local Paradise in New York City. The Interfaith Center of New York
México, identidad y ruptura. La Caixa Fundación Telefónica, Madrid; Museo Abelló de El Mollet, Barcelona, Spain
2003 México Iluminado. Freedman Gallery, Albright Center for the Arts, Reading, PA
De lo que soy/Of what I am. Lehman College Art Gallery. Bronx, NY
Paradise Lost? Aspects of Latin American Landscape in Art. Lowe Art Museum. Coral Gables, FL
2002 Kairi 02. Trinidad and Tobago International Film Festival. Delux Cinema, and CCA 7, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago
10th Biennial of Visual Arts. Crossings in Pancevo, 2002. Galerija Savremene Umetnosti, Pancevo, Yugoslavia
Eva und die Schlange. Art Building in The Bodenburg Castle Garden, Bad Salzdetfurth, Germany
2001 Neuberger Museum of Art, 2001 Biennial Exhibition of Public Art. Purchase College State University of New York, Purchase, NY
Bienal El Barro de America. Museo de Arte Contemporáneo Sofía Imber, Caracas, Venezuela
Nuevas Tendencias. Museo Nacional de Arte. México City
2000 Age of Influence: Reflections in the Mirror of American Culture. Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, IL
Growing Cities/Basic Needs. International Women's University, Hannover, Germany
Territorios Colindantes. La Voz, Festival of the Americas. Santa Fe, NM
Gardens of Pleasure. John Michael Kohler Art Center. Scheboygan, WI
Blemish, Memphis College of Art. Memphis, TN
Environmentally Concerned. Nathan Cummings Foundation, Dante Park, New York
1998 Archive X. O. K Offenes Kulturhaus, Linz, Austria
Paper +. Dieu Donné Papermill, New York
III Salon Internacional de Estandartes. CECUT, Tijuana, México
II Bienal Internacional Arte Objeto. Museo Jose Luis Cuevas, México
Cinco Continentes y una Ciudad. Antiguo Arzobispado, México City
El cuerpo aludido. Representaciones del cuerpo humano del siglo XVI al siglo XX. Museo Nacional de Arte, México City
1997 Embodied Abstraction. Americas Society, New York
VI Bienal de La Habana. Habana, Cuba
Premio MARCO. Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Monterrey, México
III Bienal de Monterrey. Museo de Monterrey, México
Arte Mexicana. Museo de Arte Contemporaneo de la Universidad de São Paulo, Brazil
1996 Metáforas: fotografía construida. Museo de Monterrey, México
Premio MARCO. Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Monterrey, México
1995 Expo Gay. Museo Universitario del Chopo. México City
Autorretrato en México. Museo de Arte Moderno. México City
Salon de Arte Bancomer, México City
1994 II Bienal de Monterrey. Museo de Monterrey, México
Paisajes transitados. Centro Cultural Hacienda. México City
Premio MARCO. Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Monterrey, México
1993 La mujer en México. Musee d´Art Moderne. Liège, Belgium
La pintura herída. Plástica Jove Mexicana, Centre Cultural de la Fundacio la Caixa de Terrasa y Museu de L’Empordá, Barcelona, España
1992 I Bienal de Monterrey. Museo de Monterrey, México
Eco-Art., Museo de Arte Moderno, Río de Janeiro, Brasil
Mexican Traditions In Contemporary Art. The Armory Center, Pasadena, CA
Chicano-Latino, Parallels & Divergences. El Paso Museum of Art, TX
Four Decades After The Muralists/Cuatro Décadas Después del Muralismo. Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum, Chicago, IL
1991 Recent Acquisitions: Works On Paper. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY
La mujer en México/Women in Mexico. The National Academy of Design, New York;
Centro Cultural Arte Contemporáneo, México City; Museo de Monterrey, México
La escultura y la UNAM. Museo del Chopo, UNAM, México City
La mujer en la plástica Méxicana. Universidad de Xalapa, Veracruz, México
Dibujo mexicano de los años ochenta. Museo de Arte Contemporáneo Carrillo Gil, INBA, México City
1990 The Face of the Pyramid: A New Generation In Mexico. The Gallery, NY
1989 Salón Nacional de Artes Plásticas, Sección Dibujo. Galería del Auditorio Nacional, INBA. México City
Salón Nacional de Artes Plásticas, Sección Espacios Alternativos.
Galería del Auditorio Nacional, INBA. México City
1988 Salón Nacional de Artes Plásticas, Sección Escultura. Galería del Auditorio Nacional, INBA. México City
Current Arrivals. Museum of Contemporary Hispanic Art. New York, NY
Expresiones Hispanas. Centro Cultural Mexicano. San Antonio, TX; Arvada Center For The Arts And Humanities. Arvada, CO;
South West Museum, Los Angeles, CA
1987 X años del Salón de Artes Plásticas. Museo de Arte Moderno. México City
Encuentros 92. Itinerant exhibition. Spain
1986 Small Wonders. The Aspen Museum. Aspen, CO
Pintores Americanos en Madrid. Centro Cultural Casa Del Reloj. Madrid, Spain
Salón Nacional de Artes Plásticas, Sección Dibujo. Galería del Auditorio Nacional, INBA. México City
Theatre (selected):
2022 Marie Antoinette. Costume Designer. By David Adjmi. Amphibian Stage, Fort Worth, TX
Packrat. Costume Designer. By Renee Philippi. Co-produced by Concrete Temple Theatre, New York and Yellowbomb, Seoul, S. Korea
2021 Hamlet Ride. Costume Designer. By Renee Philippi. Concrete Temple Theatre
2020 The Waitress and the Robber. Costume Designer. Opera by Renee Philippi. Dixon Place and PS21, New York, in association with
Concrete Temple Theatre NY and Playfactory Mabangzen, Korea
2019 Companionship. Production Designer. Composer and libretto by Rachel Adams, adapted from the short story by Arthur Phillips. Dir. Beth Greenberg.
Producer: Fort Worth Opera. Botanic Gardens, Fort Worth, Texas.
Packrat. Costume Designer. By Renee Philippi. Producer: Concrete Temple Theatre.
2016 Florencia en el Amazonas. Costume Designer in collaboration with Universidad CENTRO. By Daniel Catán. Dir. Simón Saad. Producer: Andrea Puente.
Teatro Bicentenario, Estado de México y Centro Nacional de las Artes, México D.F.
2015 The Quixotic Days and Errant Nights of the Knight Errant Don Quijote. Costume Designer. By Brenda Withers adapted from Miguel Cervantes Saavedra.
Dir. Matthew Earnest. Producer: Amphibian Productions. Fort Worth
2003 The True History of the Tragic Life and Triumphant Life of Julia Pastrana, The Ugliest Woman in the World. Costume Designer.
By Shaun Prendergast. Dir. JV Mercanti. Producer: Amphibian Productions. Greenwich Street Theatre, New York
2002 Leonce and Lena. Costume Designer. By Georg Buchner. Dir. Lenard Petit. Producer: Amphibian Productions. Connelly Theatre, New York
Catalogues/Bibliography/Press/Essays (Selected):
2023 Laura Anderson Barbata. Singing Leaf. Exhibition catalog. Marlborough Gallery. Texts by Edward J. Sullivan and Madeline Murphy Turner.
Julia Pastrana´s Long Journey Home, Laura Anderson Barbata. Section: Discussions in Decolonisation in Museums and Collections, Chapter 16. The Routledge Handbook of
Museums, Heritage and Death. Co-edited by Drs. Trish Biers and Katie Clary.
2022 Julia Pastrana and The Eye of the Beholder, Laura Anderson Barbata and Tamilla Woodard, Chapter 29. Love Letters to a Bridge Called My Back.
Ed. Gloria J. Wilson, Joni B. Acuff and Amelia M. Kraehe. University of Arizona Press.
Own Stories, Own Materials: Papermaking and Bookmaking in the Amazon of Venezuela. Hand Papermaking Magazine. Summer 2022. (Forthcoming)
2021 Making Waves: A Conversation with Laura Anderson Barbata. Laura Anderson Barbata and Madeline Murphy Turner. MoMA Post. January 20, 2021
https://post.moma.org/making-waves-a-conversation-with-laura-anderson-barbata/
Murphy Turner, Madeline. We, a part of them: Laura Anderson Barbata and the disassembly of border regimes. Burlington Contemporary, UK
2020 Anderson Barbata, Laura. Looking Back to 1992, Latin American Latinx Visual Culture 2.2 (2020): 90-98.
Anderson Barbata, Laura. Intervention: Indigo. Public Space/Contested Space. Chapter 8.
Edited by Kevin D. Murphy and Sally O´Driscoll. Taylor & Francis/Routledge, UK.
Anderson Barbata, Laura. Masks For Tortillas:19 x 9 cm for COVID-19. ASAP/Journal, Volume 5, Number 3, September 2020, pp. 520-527. Johns Hopkins University Press.
Anderson Barbata, Laura. Book-making in the Amazon of Venezuela: A Tool for Advocacy, Social Justice, Self-Determination, and Environmental Protection.
The book Club of California Quarterly. Vol. LXXXV, No. 4. Fall 2020. Pp. 110-114
Margolies, Jane. The Elevated Art of Helping Others. The New York Times. Sunday, May 3, 2020
2019 Anderson Barbata, Laura. Activating Our Cities through Transdisciplinary Transnational Projects. The Impossibility of Mapping (Urban Asia).
Ed. Ute Meta Bauer, Roger Nelson and Khim Ong. World Scientific Publishing Singapore (2019): 234-243
The Eye of the Beholder. Performing Resistance. Laura Anderson Barbata. Emergency Index.
An Annual Document of Performance Practice. Vol. 9. 2019. pp. 586-587
2017 The Eye of the Beholder. Julia Pastrana´s Long Journey Home. Edited by Laura Anderson Barbata and Donna Wingate. Lucia-Marquand, Seattle
Small Axe: A Caribbean Journal of Criticism. Journal, Number 52, 2017. Duke University Press, Durham, NC. pp 154-155
2016 Wolf, Lea. Material Culture. Tatter-BRIC publication. Brooklyn, NY. pp 4-17
2015 Cochran, Jessica and Melissa Potter. Social Paper. Epicenter, Center for Book and Paper Arts at Columbia College Chicago. pp.48-49
Tancons, Claire and Krista Thompson. En Mas' : Carnival And Performance Art Of The Caribbean.
Independent Curators International, New York and Contemporary Arts Center, New Orleans
2014 Tancons, Claire. "Occupy Wall Street: Carnival Against Capital? Carnivalesque As Protest Sensibility". In
The Political Aesthetics Of Global Protest. The Arab Spring And Beyond., 1st ed. Edinburgh University Press in association with
The AGA Khan University. pp 291-319
Contemporary Arts and Encaustic. Documentary for University Libraries. Director: Catherine Nash. USA
Julia Pastrana. Documentary for French Television. Director: Sandrine Conte. France.
2013 Laura Anderson Barbata. Transcommunality. Interventions and Collaborations in Stilt Dancing Communities.
Introduction by Edward Sullivan. Interview by Tim Rollins + KOS, essay by Melissa Potter. Ed. Turner Books, Madrid.
2012 Novozhenova, Sasha. Art and Activism in Russia and Abroad. Artchronika Contemporary Art. Moscow, Russia. March 2012, pp. 87-94
Marclary, K.T. Artistic Intervention: Laura Anderson Barbata. Mujeres, February 2012, pp. 24-25
Woodal, Stephen, Potter, Melissa, Anderson Barbata, Laura. Practice 1.
Studio Research from the center for Book and Paper Arts. Columbia College Chicago, Il. Spring 2012
Gamez, Silvia. Julia Pastrana. Periódico Reforma. 27 de Febrero, 18 de Junio, 28 de Junio, 2012
Cotter, Holland. Caribbean: Crossroads of the World. New York Times. Art and Design. June 16, 2012.
Works by Laura Anderson Barbata at the Queens Museum of Art. pg 5 online
2011 Tancons, Claire. Occupy Wall Street: Carnival Against Capital? Carnivalesque as Protest Sensibility. e-flux journal. Issue 30. 12-2011
Gamez, Silvia. Julia Pastrana. 31 de octubre, 1 de Noviembre, 24 de Noviembre, 10 de Diciembre, 2011
2010 Potter, Melissa. Among Tender Roots: Laura Anderson Barbata (Exhibition catalogue).
Center for Book and Paper Arts at Columbia College Chicago, IL
Collischan, Judy. Made in the U.S.A., iUniverse, Inc., New York, pp.425
2009 McGregor, Jennifer. The Muhheakantuck in Focus. (Exhibition catalogue). Wave Hill, Bronx, pp.5, 6
2008 Williams, Maxwell. Jumbie Camp. Tokion, Vol. 2 No. 2, January, 2008, pp.118-123
2007 Cotter, Holland. Designs for Dancing in the Street, The New York Times, Friday, September 7, 2007. Weekend Arts. Vol. CLVI..No. 54,060. Pg.E30
Collins, Judy. Sculpture Today. Phaidon Press, UK. pp.154-155
Ferrer, Elizabeth. Cardinal Points (Exhibition catalogue). ExhibitsUSA, Kansas City, pp.16, 17
Landi, Ann. Jumbie Camp, ARTnews, Vol 106, No 10, November 2007, pp.222
Kartofel Graciela. Laura Anderson-Barbata, ArtNexus, No. 67 Vol 6, pp. 172, 173
2006 Bauer, Ute Meta and Von Spreter, Stephanie. A Travelogue: Transbord.Office for Contemporary Art Norway, Oslo, Norway
Moko Jumbies. Documentary. German Television. Director: Harald Rumpt
2005 The Dancing Spirits of Trinidad, Moko Jumbies, Photographs by Stefan Falke. Pointed Leaf Press; New York
De la Academia a la Institución (Exhibition catalogue). Consejo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes,
Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes y Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes. Landucci Editores, México
2004 160 Años de Fotografía en México, CENART-Centro de la Imágen. Editorial Oceano; pp.89
2003 Sárosdy, Judit and Martínez de León, Grisell. Laura Anderson Barbata(Exhibition catalogue). Kiscelli Múzeum Templomtere, Budapest, Hungary
2001 Heartney, Eleanor. Neuberger Museum of Art, 2001 Biennial Exhibition of Public Art, Purchase College, State University of New York. pp.6,10,11
Debroise, Olivier. Abstracción, transformación y no figuración, Consejo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes. pp.5, 6
Kreis, Elfi. Afrika, Amazonas, Mon Amour. Ansichts Sache, Berliner Kunstmagazin der besonderen Art1. Oktober 2001, pp.10, 11
2000 Fajardo, Cecilia. Traces of Infinity (Exhibition catalogue). Galeria Ramis Barquet, New York; Wave Hill, Bronx, NY
Arteaga, Agustín. Apuntes para una colección del siglo XXI. Nuevas adquisiciones de obra de arte,
Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores, México DF; pp.12, 36
Escallón, Ana María and Zenetou, Artemis. Mastering the Millennium, Art of The Americas,
The Art Museum of the Americas. Washington D.C. pp.25
Stein, Axel. Cuentos del Orinoco y Otros Relatos, (Exhibition catalogue). Sala Mendoza. Caracas, Venezuela
De la Academia a la Institución (Exhibition catalogue). Consejo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes, Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes y
Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes. Landucci Editores, México
Borras, Maria Llüisa. Between Poetry and Commitment. Art Nexus, no. 36 May-July, pp.48-52
Sneider Enriquez, Mary. Laura Anderson Barbata, Ramis Barquet Gallery, New York,
Art Nexus, no. 35, Enero-Marzo 2000, pp.136-137, February- April 2000, pp.144-145
Goodman, Jonathan. Laura Anderson Barbata, Wave Hill, Sculpture Magazine, Vol.19, No.1, January/February 2000, pp.61, 62
1999 Zimmer, William. Tracing a Path, Real and Historical, The New York Times, Sunday, October 31, 1999. pp.16
Monsalve, Yasmín. Laura Anderson revaloriza el mundo indígena, El Universal, 25-2-99, pp.3-12
1998 Hiebert, Helen. Papermaking with Plants, Storey Books, Pownal, VT; pp.76, 77
Krassny, Elke. Archive X, Investigations of Contemporary Art (Exhibition catalogue). O. K Centrum für Gegenwartskunst, Oberösterreich; Linz, Austria
Ferrer, Elizabeth. In the Order of Chaos/En el orden del Caos, (Exhibition catalogue),
The Austin Museum of Art, Austin, Texas; Galeria Ramis Barquet, New York
Stein, Axel. Amazonien Alphabet, Lebenskunstwerke (LKW), Kunstforum, Bd. 142, Oktober-Dezember 1998, pp.80-89
Costa, Eduardo. Report from Havana, The Installation Biennial, Art in America, No.3, March 98, pp.53
1997 Weiss, Rachel. The Sixth Havana Biennial, Art Nexus, No. 26, October/November 97, pp.72-75
Heartney, Eleanor. Embodied Abstraction at the Americas Society, Art In America, October 1997, vol. 85, #10, pp.123-124
1996 Garcia, Emma Cecilia. Metáforas, Museo de Monterrey, México
1995 Sullivan, Edward J. Latin American Women Artists,1915-1995, The Milwaukee Art Museum Press, Milwaukee, WI; pp.63
1994 Sullivan, Edward J. Latin American Art In The Twentieth Century, Phaidon Books, London; pp.10, 12
1993 Sullivan, Edward J. Regards de Femmes (Exhibition catalogue). Musee d´Art Moderne. Liège, Belgium; pp.134-137
Juanes, Jorge. La pintura herida, Fundació Cultural De La Caixa De Terrassa, Barcelona, España; pp.24-25
Tibol, Raquel. Laura Anderson recicla objetos tribales, Proceso, No.956, pp.67
1990 Espinoza, Antonio. Four Decades After The Muralists/Cuatro Decadas Despues Del Muralismo, (Exhibition catalogue).
Kimberly Gallery, Washington, DC; pp.20-23
Messinger, L.M. The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, Fall 1991, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY; p.69
1989 Sullivan, Edward J. La Mujer En México/Women In Mexico (Exhibition catalogue). The National Academy of Design, New York, NY;
Centro Cultural de Arte Contemporáneo, México City
Teaching, Lectures and Panels (Selected):
2023 Julia Pastrana´s Long Journey Home. Within the scope of the TQW Research Affiliation held by Eva Egermann: Speculative Fiction mit Julia Pastrana, Crip Magzine und C-TV
Tasquartier, Vienna. October 25th.
En el orden del caos. Conferencia. Simposio de arte y destrucción. Programa público de la exposición Raphael Montañez Ortiz: Una retrospectiva contextual. Museo Tamayo,
México.
Performing Care. The Display of Feminist Ethics in Public Space: Reciprocity, Ritual and Community. Chair. College Art Association Annual Conference, New York.
Intervention: Cochinilla. Presenter. College Art Association Annual Conference, New York.
2022 Laura Anderson Barbata: La experiencia de lo común. Aula e intervenciones en el espacio público. LA_ESCUELA. Desarrollado con Ciudad Abierta, la Pontificia Universidad
Católica de Valparaiso, la Escuela de Arquitectura y Diseño y La Escuela de Cine de la Unviersidad de Valparaiso, Chile. January-June
Hispanic Heritage Month: Laura Anderson Barbata. Lehman College, New York. October 13th
Sunday Lecture Series. Albuquerque Museum of Art, Albuquerque. March 20th.
Tuesday Night Lecture Series., Boston University. February 1st.
Women and Masks: An Arts-Based Research Conference. Boston University. Panelist. Coordinated by Felice Amato.
2021 C-MAP Transversal Orientations. MoMA. Panel 2: Acts of Transfer and the Repertoire. Presenter. Introduced by Roxana Marcoci.
Moderated by Inga Lace and coordinated by Madeline Murphy Turner
TFAP@CAA-The Feminist Art Project. Ecofeminisms. Convener: Tatiana Flores. Co-chairs: Ana María Reyes and Laura Anderson Barbata
2020 Elizabeth Ferrer with Laura Anderson Barbata (livestream). A Visual History of Latinx Photography in the US. Town Hall Seattle. November 19, 2020
Jurado. Residencias Internacionales. Sistema Nacional de Creadores FONCA. México D.F.
Care Package. MoMA PS1 Instagram Takeover. Laura Anderson Barbata in collaboration with Alicia Grullón.
Mutual Aid. Laura Anderson Barbata, MoMA PS1, MoMA Teens and Allianz. Zoom workshops and Conference.
BRIC Donor Event. Laura Anderson Barbata in Conversation with Elizabeth Ferrer. Zoom.
Julia Pastrana. Laura Anderson Barbata and Shawn Prendergast in conversation with Ayesha Ganguli. Amphibian Stage. Zoom.
2019 The Story of Julia Pastrana. Presentation by Laura Anderson Barbata. Brown Auditorium, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, LACMA
Lo común, ¿empatía o conflicto?. Taller de Artista Invitado. Escuela Nacional de Pintura, Escultura y Grabado, La Esmeralda.
Transcomunalidad, Conferencia. Museo Amparo, Puebla.
Julia Pastrana´s Long Journey Home. Artist Lecture. BARD College, Annandale-on-Hudson, New York
2018 National Council on Public History NCPH 2018 Conference. Death and Display, Bodies and Boundaries, Roundtable discussion,
moderated by: Katie Stringer Clary. Las Vegas, NV
The Eye of the Beholder: Julia Pastrana´s Long Journey Home. Book Presentation and Lecture.
University of Wisconsin, Latin American, Caribbean and Iberian Studies, LACIS. Madison, WI
2017 Art of Collaboration. Julia Pastrana Zine Intensive workshop. Center for Books and Paper, Columbia College Chicago.
2016 Mapping Resistance and Resilience in Latin American, Caribbean, and Iberian Studies, Roundtable 3: Advocacy. Panel discussion.
The Seminar on the Acquisition of Latin American Library Materials, SALALM LXI, Charlottesville, VA
Allies or Aliens: Collaborating Across Cultures. Panel discussion. Open Engagement, Oakland, CA
The Repatriation of Julia Pastrana. Transdisciplinary/Transnational Social Art Practice. Lecture and Workshop. The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA
Lo Común: ¿Empatia o Conflicto?. Lecture and Workshop. Escuela Nacional de Pintura, Escultura y Grabado La Esmeralda, Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes, INBA, México City
2015 Material in Motion. Keynote Lecture. North American Textile Conservation Conference. Smithsonian Museum of the American Indian, New York
Social Practice in and Around Latin America. Panel discussion. ASAP7, Arts and the Present, Greenville, SC
2015-2010 Associate Professor. Escuela Nacional de Pintura, Escultura y Grabado La Esmeralda, INBA. México City
2015 Associate Professor. University of Wisconsin, Madison
2012 Jóvenes Creadores, FONCA, CONACULTA. Mexico. Tutor and Juror.
Community Art and Social Action. Lecture. Teacher´s College. Columbia University, New York
Premio Centenario, MACO. Juror for selection and awards. Acquisition Awards. Fundación Cuervo, México City
2011 Festival Ma(yo) en Oaxaca. Laura Anderson Barbata, los Zancudos de Zaachila y los Brooklyn Jumbies. Lecture and Performance in Barrio de Jalatlaco.
Secretaría de las Artes y Cultura del Estado de Oaxaca la Curtiduría Espacio Contemporáneo, Oaxaca de Juarez, México
Laura Anderson Barbata: Etica y Arte, Intercomunalidad y Refugiados.Jornadas de Reflexión en Torno al Día Mundial del Refugiado.
Coordinado por el Centro de Investigaciones de América Latina y el Caribe de la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. México City
Apparatjik Mini Summit. Sustaining Creativity-Creating Sustainability. Globe for Frankfurt and the World; Art Music and Performance.
Deutsche Bank Towers. Hosts: Apparatjik and Ute Meta Bauer. Frankfurt, Germany
2010 Sin lo uno no hay lo otro, TEDxDF. Teatro de la Ciudad, México City
In the Order of Chaos: XXI Century Living in the Amazon. Lecture. MIT Program in Art, Culture and Technology.
Fall 2010 Lecture Series. Give Me Shelter: Second Skin for Extreme Environments?, Cambridge, MA
Art in the Social Realm. Lecture. Colgate University, Hamilton, NY
Among Tender Roots. Lecture. Columbia College Chicago Center for Book and Paper Arts, Chicago, IL
Art in the Social Realm. Lecture. Golden Auditorium. Columbia University, NY
2008 Art in the Social Realm. Lecture. The Museum of Modern Art, Fort Worth, TX
2007 Art in the Social Realm. Lecture. Teachers College. Columbia University, NY
2006 Elective Affinities. Lecture and Workshop. The Brite Borderlands Center, TCU. Fort Worth, TX
2005 Moko Jumbies and Trinidad Carnival. Lecture. Bowdoin College, ME
Papermaking in the Amazon. Lecture. Friends of Dard Hunter Conference. Salt Lake City, UT
Gift From the Sea in Life and Art. Lecture and workshop. Gift From the Sea Festival. Lindbergh Foundation, Captiva, FL
2004 ¿Esto es Arte?. Lecture. Fundación Cisneros, Caracas, Venezuela
Arte y Sociedad. Workshops: March, April, December. Instituto de Cultura de Yucatán, Mérida, México
Arte y Sociedad. Lecture. Teatro Mérida, Instituto de Cultura de Yucatán. Mérida, México
Proyectos Editoriales Indígenas. Panel discussion. Auditorio del Museo de Bellas Artes. Organized by XI Feria Internacional del Libro, Caracas, Venezuela
2003 International Contemporary Art Experts Forum ARCO’03. Art and Feminism: Creating Visibility/Re-writing History (1/2) Madrid, Spain
Yanomami Owë Mamotima project. Lecture. The Explorer’s Club. Charles and Anne Morrow Lindbergh Foundation. New York, NY
CCA7’s Talk Series. Caribbean Contemporary Arts, CCA7, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago
Conversations Across Cultures: Mexican Ways of Knowing. Lecture. Teachers College, Columbia University, New York, NY
Public Art In Mexico: New Traditions. Panel discussion. First Union Theatre, Albright College Center for the Arts, Reading, PA
Mexico Iluminado: Yanomami Owë Mamotima project by Laura Anderson Barbata. Lecture. Perkins Auditorium, Penn State University, Berks, PA
2002 Laura Anderson Barbata: Empowering Amazon Schools to Preserve Native History Through Production of Recycled Paper and Handmade Books.
Global Vision-Global Solutions. Lecture. The Charles A. and Anne Morrow Lindbergh Foundation, Little Falls, MN
2000 Growing Cities/Basic Needs. Lecture. International Women’s University, Hannover, Germany
1999 Woodlands science and art students spring workshop. Wave Hill, Bronx, NY
1998 Embodied Abstraction. Panel discussion. Americas Society, New York, NY
1998 In the Order of Chaos. Lecture. Austin Museum of Art, TX
1997 Making Paper in the Venezuelan Amazon. Lecture. Dieu Donne Papermill, New York, NY
Institutional Collections (selected):
Adam and Sophie Gimbel Design Library, Parsons School of Design, The New School, New York, New York
Arizona State University Polytechnic Campus, Mesa, Arizona
Artists’ Books Collection, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Casa del Lago UNAM, Mexico City, Mexico
Centro Cultural Arte Contemporáneo, Mexico City, Mexico
Cotsen Library Collection, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey
Franklin Furnace Archive, Brooklyn, New York
Fundación Banco Mercantil, Caracas, Venezuela
Fundaçao Bozano-Simonsen, Río de Janeiro, Brazil
Colección Patricia Phelps de Cisneros
Galería Metropolitana UAM, Mexico City, Mexico
Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles, California
Green Library, Stanford University, Stanford, California
Gimbel Library, Parsons School of Design, New York, New York
Howard-Tilton Memorial Library, Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana
Instituto de Artes Gráficas de Oaxaca, Oaxaca, Mexico
Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes y Literatura, Mexico City, Mexico
John M. Flaxman Library, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Illinois
Kohler Art Library, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin
Landesbank Baden-Württemberg, Stuttgart, Germany
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, New York
Museo de Arte Abstracto Manuel Felguérez, Zacatecas, Mexico
Museo de Arte Alvar y Carmen T. Carillo Gil, Mexico City, Mexico
Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico
Museo de Arte Moderno, Mexico City, Mexico
Museo de Monterrey, Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico
Museo Jaureguía, Navarra, Spain
Museo Universitario Arte Contemporáneo, DGAVUNAM
Museu Oscar Niemeyer, Curitiba, Brazil
Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego, California
Museum of Latin American Art, Long Beach, California
Museum of Modern Art, New York, New York
Penn University Library, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Raúl Rangel Frías Biblioteca, Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León, Monterrey, Mexico
Richter Library, University of Miami, Miami, Florida
San Antonio Museum of Art, San Antonio, Texas
Smithsonian Archives of American Art, Washington D.C.
Spencer Collection, The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs, New York Public Library, New York, New York
Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary
Tozzer Library, Harvard University, Cambridge Massachusetts
University of California, Santa Barbara Library, Isla Vista, California
USC Fisher Museum of Art, Los Angeles, California