María Velasco is a Spanish-born artist who has been living and working in the US since 1991. Her interdisciplinary work consists of site-specific environments, urban interventions, sculptural objects, and temporary public art commissions. Her work deals with issues of displacement, migration, gender identity, vulnerability, and the structures of authority that govern our lives. She has shown her work nationally and internationally in university and private museums, and contemporary art venues such as The Soap Factory in Minneapolis, MN; the Contemporary Arts Forum in Santa Barbara, CA; the ARC gallery in Chicago, IL; the Spencer Museum of Art in Lawrence, KS; H&R Block Artspace, the Kansas City Artists Coalition, Avenue of the Arts in Kansas City, MO; the Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art in Saint Joseph, MO; the Paula Cooper gallery and the Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts, both in New York City.

Internationally, she has exhibited in Salón Tentaciones (Madrid, Spain), Museo Del Barro (Asunción, Paraguay), Paradise Gardens Biennial VI, (Darmstadt, Germany), Mexico, Argentina and Morocco. Her work appears in prestigious publications including Art In America and Sculpture Magazine, and has been reviewed by The Kansas City Star, Art Focus Oklahoma; The Village Voice, and the Chicago Reader. She was Artist-in-Residence at Sculpture Space (2007) and International Artist-in-Residence at Proyecto 'Ace, in Buenos Aires, Argentina (2012). In 2016, she was Artist-in-Residence at Green Olive Arts, in Tetouan, Morocco. In the summer of 2019, she attended Marble House Project residency in Dorset, VT, and a family-friendly residency at Elsewhere Studios, in Paonia, CO. Her short documentary All of Me: Artists+Mothers has been Official Selection at the Screen Power Film Festival in London, UK and has won Best Female Representation Award at WIFTA (Women in Film and Television Atlanta), Short Films Showcase, Film Impact Georgia. It has screened at Female Filmmakers Fuse Festival, Los Angeles, CA in 2021. ADD MORE CHANGE THIS

Her professional contributions include leading independent curatorial projects, discussion panels, and workshops nationally and abroad. She has been a juror for the National Endowment for the Arts (Washington DC) in 2002 and 2005 and has served in the Board of Directors for MidAmerica College Art Association (MACCA), and in various committees at College Art Association (CAA). She has received numerous awards and grants; most notably, a Rocket Grant Award-a program of the Kansas City Charlotte Street Foundation and the University of Kansas Spencer Museum of Art (funded by the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts); Lighton International Artist Exchange Program Grant; Kansas Arts Commission Collaborative Grant; Avenue of the Arts Foundation Grant; Kansas Arts Commission Individual Artist Fellowship for Interdisciplinary Art, and Elizabeth Firestone Graham Foundation Emerging Artists Grant. Velasco was the first student in Visual Art to obtain a scholarship through the Madrid-California Education Abroad program at the Universidad Complutense of Madrid, Spain.  

María Velasco received her Bachelor Degree in Painting from the Universidad Complutense of Madrid in 1989, and her Master of Fine Arts in New Genre from the University of California at Santa Barbara in 1993. She is a Professor of Visual Art in the Expanded Media Department at the University of Kansas, and teaches courses in Installation Art, Social Practice, Expanded Media, Professionalism in the Arts, Contemporary Theory and Criticism, and Drawing. She currently lives in Lawrence, KS with her eleven-year old son, Alex, who loves to draw and make art. 

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Solo Exhibitions (selected)

2018Spaces of Conviviality, Centro Negra-AADK, Murcia, Spain

2016-17 A City with a View, Washburn Outdoor Sculpture Competition, Washburn University, Topeka, KS

2016 Breaking Patterns, Green Olive Arts Residency Studios, Tetouan, Morocco

2014        A Very Long Night/La Noche Más Larga, Myers Gallery, Living Arts of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK

2013             A Very Long Night/La Noche Más Larga, Mallin Gallery, Kansas City Artists Coalition, Kansas City, MO

2012             A Very Long Night/La Noche Más Larga, Sala Políglota, Proyecto Ace, Buenos Aires, Argentina

2008            Recent Works. Gardiner Art Gallery, Bartlett Center for the Visual Arts, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK

2005            BLUEprints of the Heart, University Art Gallery, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, CA

2004-05       A City with a View, Avenue Of The Arts, Kansas City, MO

2003            That Which Holds Promise, Erman B. White Gallery, Butler County Community College, El Dorado, KS

                      Los Labios de Teresa, Eppink Art Gallery, King Hall, Emporia State University, Emporia, KS

2002            Los Labios de Teresa, Sala Augusto Schiavoni, Centro Cultural Bernardino Rivadavia, Rosario, Argentina

2001             tierra de nadie, Gallery 1101, Department of Cinema and Photography, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL

2000            Recent Work, Individual Artists of Oklahoma Gallery, Oklahoma City, OK

                      Recent Work. Mallin Gallery, Kansas City Artists Coalition, Kansas City, MO

1999             tierra de nadie/nobody’s land, Art And Music Center Gallery, Aquinas College, Grand Rapids, MI

1998             tierra de nadie. Museo Del Barro, Asunción, Paraguay

                      Remember Lot’s Wife..., Raw Space Gallery, Artists Residents of Chicago Gallery, Chicago, IL

                      Remember Lot’s Wife..., Willard Hall Art Gallery, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS

1997             Remember Lot’s Wife..., Salina Art Center, Salina, KS

1996             Of Loss and Endurance, New Art Department Faculty Show (two person). Art and Design Gallery, University of Kansas,
Lawrence, KS

1995             Unseen Unheard: Voices of Children of Battered Women, curated by Rita Ferri, Contemporary Arts Forum, Santa Barbara, CA

1993             Speaking KnotsHablando Nudos, Women's Center Gallery, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA

Collaborative Projects

2007-08       Stop Look Listen, Audio Tour and Outdoor Installation (with Janet Davidson-Hues), curated by Dr. Susan Earle,  Spencer Museum of Art, Lawrence, KS

2005            Step-By-Step Ascension To Paradise, Outdoor Installation (with Janet Davidson-Hues), curated by Ute Ritschel, Paradise Gardens Biennial VI, Darmstadt, Germany.

1996             Ebb + Flow: Never Step Same River Twice, (with Diana Dunkley). Riverfront Plaza Outdoor Promenade and the Kansas River sandbar, Lawrence, KS

1994              In the Presence of Absence, (with Lisa Kaftori), Ridley-Tree Education Center, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Santa Barbara, CA

 Urban Interventions

2018 Cosas De Blanca (Spaces of Conviviality), Artisan Market Booth, Blanca, Murcia, Spain

2016             Breaking Patterns, Cafe Bertuchi, Tetouan, Morocco

                      Vanishing Patterns, Hotel Blanco Riad, Tetouan, Morocco

2001             Untitled. Asunción, Paraguay

                      Proyecto de Beso (Kiss Project), Asunción, Paraguay

Film Screenings

2020 All of Me: Artists+Mothers, Official Selection + Screening, Female Filmmakers Fuse Film Festival, Los Angeles, CA

All of Me: Artists+Mothers, Official Selection + Screening, WIFTA Short Film Showcase, (Women in Film and Television

Atlanta}, Best Female Representation Award, Film Impact Georgia

All of Me: Artists+Mothers, Official Selection, Screen Power Film Festival, London, UK

Group Exhibitions (selected)

2020 Artists Respond (online exhibition), Spencer Museum of Art, Lawrence, KS

Home-Works: Online Exhibition and Zine, Spilt Milk, Edinburgh, UK

2016             Kansas City Flatfiles, H&R Block Artspace at the Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City, MO  

2015             Patterns and Mobiles, Coolture Lab, Madrid, Spain

                      Patterns and Mobiles, Factoría Cultural, Matadero-Madrid, Madrid, Spain

2012             Earth: Language and Symbols, Cara and Cabezas Contemporary, Kansas City, MO

2008             In Residence: Recent Projects from Sculpture Space. Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts, curated by Christa Erickson and Patterson Sims

New York City, NY 

2007             BLUEprints of the Heart, Video Screening. School of Fine Arts Collage Concert, Lied Center, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

                      Works-In-Progress, SculptureSpace, Utica, NY

                      Material Matters, the Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art, Saint Joseph, MO

2001             Esperando a Goya. Muestra De Arte Español, curated by Osvaldo Salerno and Ticio Escobar, Museo del Barro, Asunción, Paraguay

1999             tierra de nadie, Estampa--VII International Printmaking Art Fair, curated by Víctor del Campo, Salón Tentaciones, Recinto ferial Casa de Campo, Madrid, Spain

                      Body, curated by Saralyn Reece-Hardy, Salina Art Center, Salina, KS

1998             Light Sensitive, Galeria Mesa, Mesa, AZ

1997              Material/Immaterial, No Name Exhibitions @ The Soap Factory Gallery, Minneapolis, MN.

                      A Woman’s Place is in the World, Alexandre Hoghe Gallery, School of Art, University of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK

1995             Time Capsule: A Concise Encyclopedia by Women Artists, Paula Cooper Gallery, New York City, NY

                      Women Beyond Borders, Traveling Exhibition, Contemporary Arts Forum, Santa Barbara, CA

1993             Speaking KnotsHablando Nudos, MFA Thesis Show, University Art Museum, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA.

Performances

2002            Disrupting Pharaoh’s Dream: Devouring Mother. Lunar Performances Series, with B. Haum and J. Davidson-Hues, NYU/KU

2001             Fan Club, with a.k.a., Nightingale Theater, New Genre Festival, sponsored by Living Arts of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK

2000            Fan Club, with a.k.a., Context Theater, The 4th New York International Fringe Festival, New York City, NY

1999             Body Speech, Salina Art Center, Salina, KS

1997             Seeing Red, with a.k.a., Spencer Museum of Art, Lawrence, KS

1994             In The Spirit Of Fluxus, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Santa Barbara, CA

Teaching Experience

2019-present Professor of Art, Visual Art Department, School of the Arts, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS. Teach courses in Installation Art, Expanded Media, Professional Activities Seminar, Social Practice, Drawing, and Life Drawing.

2001-2019 Associate Professor of Art, Visual Art Department, School of The Arts, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS. Teach courses in Installation Art, Participatory Art, Expanded Media, Professionalism in the Arts, Contemporary Theory and Criticism, Drawing, and Life Drawing. 

1995-2001 Assistant Professor of Art, Visual Art Department, School of The Arts, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS. Teach courses in Installation Art, Contemporary Theory and Criticism, Drawing, and Life Drawing. 

Artist Residencies

2019 MOTHRA, Artscape Gibraltar Point, Toronto, Canada (cancelled due to COVID 19)

Marble House Project, Dorset, VT

Elsewhere Studios, Paonia, CO

Womens’ Studio Workshop, Rosendale, NY ( listed as an alternate)

2018             Artist Residency, Centro Negra-AADK, Murcia, Spain

2016             Convergence Residency, Green Olive Arts, Tetouan, Morocco

2012             International Artist Residency, Proyecto 'Ace, Buenos Aires, Argentina

2007             Artist Residency, Sculpture Space, Utica, NY

1986             Artist-in-Residence, Atelier Nord, Oslo, Norway

Awards /Funding (selected)

2020 Best Female Representation Award, All of Me: Artists+Mothers, WIFTA (Women in Film and Television Atlanta) Short Film Showcase, Film Impact Georgia

2019 General Research Fund (Toronto), University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

International Reseach Travel Fund (Toronto), International Programs, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

CLAS Faculty Travel Award (Toronto), School of the Arts, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

CLAS Faculty Travel Award (Colorado), School of the Arts, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

2018             Award of Excellence, Animation category, Depth of Field International Film Festival (DOFIFF)

                      Official Selection, Depth of Field International Film Festival (DOFIFF)

                      The Research Excellence Fund (Spain), College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

                      International Travel Fund for Humanities Research (Spain), Office of International Programs, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

                      General Research Fund (Spain), School of the Arts, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

2017             CLAS Faculty Travel Award (Spain), School of the Arts, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

2016             Washburn Outdoor Sculpture Competition Award, Washburn University, Topeka, KS

                      Hall Center Faculty Travel Grant (Morocco), Hall Center for the Humanities, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

                      International Reseach Travel Fund (Morocco), International Programs, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

                      Diversity Scholars Program, Center for Teaching Excellence, University Of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

2014             Rocket Grants Program, (Charlotte Street Foundation, Spencer Museum of Art, Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts.)

                     CLAS Faculty Travel Award (Tulsa, OK), School of The Arts, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

2013             Rocket Grants Program, Research and Development, (Charlotte Street Foundation, Spencer Museum of Art, Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts.)

2012             International Reseach Travel Fund (Argentina), International Programs, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

                     Lighton International Artist Exchange Program, (Argentina), Kansas City Artists Coalition, Kansas City, MO

                     General Research Fund (Argentina), University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

2010            Collaborative Grant, Kansas Arts Commission, Topeka, KS

2007            Hall Center Creative Work Fellowship, Hall Center for the Humanities, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

2005            Hall Center Faculty Travel Grant (Germany), University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

 General Research Fund, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

2004            International Faculty Development Seminar in Cuba, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS               

                      Avenue of the Arts Foundation Grant, Kansas City, MO

2003            General Research Fund (Argentina), University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

2002            International Travel Fund (Argentina), University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS             

2001             Big Twelve Faculty Fellowship (Boulder, CO), University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

                      Individual Artist Fellowship For Interdisciplinary Art, Kansas Arts Commission, Topeka, KS

 General Research Fund (Paraguay), University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

2000            Elizabeth Firestone Graham Foundation, Emerging Artists Grant, Akron, OH

1997             Graduate Student Mentorship Award for The School of Fine Arts, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

1996             Certificate of Recognition, Multicultural  Resource Center, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

1995             Certificate of Appreciation, for outstanding contributions in the cataloging and preservation of Chicano Visual Arts, presented by Centro Cultural de la Raza, Galería de la Raza, Royal Chicano Air Force, Self-Help Graphics and Art, California Ethnic and Multicultural Archives (CEMA), University of California, Santa Barbara, CA

1991              Madrid-California Education Abroad Program Scholarship, Complutense University, Madrid, Spain

Presentations (selected)

2020 Panel Member, Filmmaker Live Q+A Short Film Showcase, WIFTA (Women in Film and Television Atlanta), Film Impact Georgia

2019 Panel Member, The Artist as Parent as Academic, Southeastern College Art Conference (SECAC), Chattanooga, TN

Open Studios, Artists Presentations, Marble House Project, Dorset, VT

2017             Panel Member, Immigrant Heritage Month, Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO

                      Presenter, Red Hot Research: Activism, The Commons, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

2012             Panel Member, Pearls on the Ocean Floor, Presented by Director Robert Adanto, Spencer Museum of Art, Lawrence, KS 

2010             Visiting Artist Lecture, María Velasco and James Brinsfield, Hudson Auditorium, Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art, Johnson County Community College, Overland Park, KS

                      Panel Member, Women without Men: A Film by Shirin Neshat, presented by the KU Center for Global and International Studies, Liberty Hall Theater, Lawrence, KS

2007            Resident Fellows Seminar, Healing Inscriptions, Hall Center for the Humanities, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

                      Visiting Artist Lecture, Stop Look Listen, with Janet Davidson-Hues, KU Edwards Campus Auditorium, Overland Park, KS

                      Gallery Talk, Stop Look Listen, Dialogue with Curator Susan Earle, Spencer Museum of Art, Lawrence, KS

2006            Panel Chair, Negotiating Difference: Latin American Identity, Vanderbilt University, Southeastern College Art Conference (SECAC), Nashville, TN

                      Panel Member, Off the Pedestal: Presenting Contemporary Installations and New Media, College Art Association (CAA), Boston, MA

2005            Panel Member, Juror, Visual Arts Grants and Policy Panel-Creativity and Organizational Capacity, National Endowment for the Arts, (NEA), The Nancy Hanks Center, Washington DC

2004            Panel Member, KU in Cuba: the Agony and the Ecstasy, XIII Annual Waggoner Research Colloquium, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

2003            Visiting Artist Lecture, Art Forum, Science Hall 72, Emporia State University, Emporia, KS

2002            Panel Member, Food as Contemporary Art Material, MidAmerica College Art Association (MACAA), University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE

                      Visiting Artist Lecture, Instituto Superior de Comunicación Visual, Rosario, Argentina

                      Visiting Artist Lecture, School of Fine Arts, Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Rosario, Argentina

                      Panel Member, Juror, Visual Arts Grants and Policy Panel-Creativity and Organizational Capacity, National Endowment for the Arts, (NEA), The Nancy Hanks Center, Washington DC

2001             Gallery Talk, tierra de nadie, Gallery 1101, Department of Cinema and Photography, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL

                      Visiting Artist Lecture, Encuentros entre Arte y Arquitectura, School of Architecture, Universidad Nacional de Asunción, Asunción, Paraguay

                      Visiting Artist Lecture, Instituto Superior de Arte, Asunción, Paraguay

                      Panel Member, Issues of Globalization in Latin American Art, Roundtable Panel Discussion, Centro Cultural Citibank, Asunción, Paraguay

                      Visiting Artist Lecture, Identities and Territories, Centro Cultural de España Juan de Salazar, Asunción, Paraguay

                      Discussant, Roundtable Discussion with Curator María Velasco, Why Performance Art? Real Time Exhibition, Salina Art Center, Salina, KS

1999              Panel Member, Immigrant Artists in America: Their Identity, Bicultural Contexts, and Art Making, Annual College Art Association (CAA), Toronto, Canada

Administrative Service (selected)

2004-10       Board Member, Board of Directors, MidAmerica College Art Association (MACAA)

2002-05      Member, Cultural Diversity Committee, College Art Association (CAA)

2001-03       Member, Board of Directors, Nominating Committee, College Art Association (CAA)

                      Mentor, Career Development Workshop, College Art Association (CAA)