Michele Jaquis

Michele Jaquis is an interdisciplinary artist, educator and academic administrator based in Los Angeles, CA. Her work has been exhibited in alternative spaces, galleries, museums and film/video festivals across the US and in Australia, Canada, Ireland, England, New Zealand and South Korea. Awards include Best Documentary Short and Best Editing Nominations in the 2019 REEL HeArt International Film and Screenwriting Festival in Toronto, Canada, a Spring 2018 Sabbatical and 2022, 2021, 2016, 2014, and 2011 Faculty Development Grants from Otis College of Art and Design, 2009 Vermont Studio Center Artist Grant, 2009 Voice Award Nomination sponsored by the United States Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, and Best Documentary in the 2008 Director’s Chair Film Festival in Staten Island, NY.  She has been featured in KCET Southland Sessions: “How Can I Teach Art in a Pandemic?”, Voyage LA and Artlines Summer 2019 Edition.

Jaquis holds an MFA in sculpture from Rhode Island School of Design, a BFA in sculpture and experimental studio with a minor in psychology from Hartford Art School, University of Hartford and also studied at Brown University and Burren College of Art. She is also an alumni of the Institute for Jewish Creativity and Asylum Arts’ Reciprocity Retreat. Currently she is Professor, Director of Interdisciplinary Studies, and Interim Assistant Dean of Academic Affairs at Otis College of Art and Design. In these intersecting roles, Jaquis engages students in collaborating with each other and community partners, supports students in working across and in-between the disciplines, oversees all undergraduate minors, and supports the Dean in overseeing faculty and academic affairs.

Artist Statement:
I work simultaneously on multiple long-term projects across a range of media. I combine strategies of conceptual art, process art, documentary and social practice - but I still think of myself as a sculptor at heart. This work explores personal, social and political relationships. It helps me make sense of the world and connect with others. For me, the physical, social and emotional processes of making and engaging with art are just as important as what is ultimately made.