Jenie Gao:
The Deer Garden
Opening Reception: Friday, Feb. 6 | 3 to 5 p.m.
Show Dates: Friday, Feb. 6 - Friday, Mar. 6
Location: Pratt Munson Gallery
Artist’s Bio
Jenie Gao (they/them) has run an anti-gentrification arts business since 2014, specializing in printmaking, public art, social practice, and community storytelling. They consult for cultural organizations and the public sector on equity and ethics.
Gao pulls from experiences as a second-generation Taiwanese-Chinese American and a descendant of working class immigrants. Prior to founding their business, Gao worked in the museum industry, public education, and lean manufacturing. Through their cross section of experiences, they have become attuned to issues of artists’ labour, cultural power, and institutional accountability. They run a paid apprenticeship program and have thus far mentored 25 emerging artists.
Gao has a BFA in printmaking/drawing from Washington University in St. Louis and an MFA from Emily Carr University of Art + Design. Their work is in 40 institutional collections including Bainbridge Island Museum of Art, Bowdoin College, Cornell University, Stanford University, and the Library of Congress. Their recent exhibits include Museum of Wisconsin Art, Trout Museum of Art, Burnaby Village Museum, Cedarburg Museum, and South Bend Museum of Art. Their work has been included in publications such as PBS, Shoutout LA, and Fête Chinoise. Their art residencies include Women’s Studio Workshop in Kingston, N.Y.; Art in the Park with Vancouver Board of Parks & Recreation: Decolonization, Art, & Culture; Ma’s House in the Shinnecock Reservation in Southampton, N.Y.; Iowa Lakeside Laboratory in Okoboji, Iowa; the Bubbler at Madison Public Library in Madison, Wis.; Artist Campaign School in Chicago, Ill.; Proyecto’ace in Buenos Aires, Argentina; and Museo de Arte Moderno in Chile. They are a TEDx Madison speaker and gave a talk entitled “The Power and Purpose of Creativity.”
Gao is the recently appointed executive director of Centre A: Vancouver International Centre for Contemporary Asian Art. They live on the unceded lands of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh peoples (Vancouver, British Columbia) and also Teejop / land of the Ho-Chunk (Madison, Wis.).
Free and Open to the Public
The Pratt Munson Gallery is located at Munson Museum of Art at 310 Genesee St. Utica, N.Y.
Gallery Hours
Tuesday to Saturday: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Sunday: noon to 5 p.m.
