Biba Bell
Artistic Statement
Biba makes dance in an effort to mobilize pockets of space - affective, corporeal, and architectural in dimension. She is interested in what it feels like as the body spatializes through a duration and the processes of visceral transformation undergone within the charged space of performance. Her performance work traces the contours of spaces where dance happens, before and after. Dance operates as a critical strategy toward (de)constructing venue, distributions of spectatorship, and accelerating the movement of thought, feeling, and the senses.
She is currently working on her dissertation tentatively titled “Dancing There: (un)specifying Site and Performing Space” with the direction of Prof. André Lepecki in the Department of Performance Studies at New York University.
CV
Born 1976, Sebastopol, California
Lives and works in Detroit and New York City
Education
New York University
Ph.D. Candidate in Performance Studies (currently ABD)
New York University
M.A. in Performance Studies
University of California at Santa Cruz
B.A. in Theater Arts, emphasis Dance
Alvin Ailey American Dance School, New York City
Mount Madonna Center, Watsonville, CA
Ashtanga Yoga Instructor certification
New York Open Center, New York City
Reflexology certification
San Francisco State University, Wildland Studies
World Wildlife Federation, Nepal
Honors
Corrigan Fellowship, 2008 – 2011.
PSi Travel Grant, 2010.
Affiliations
Member of Performance Studies International (PSi), 2007 – present.
Member of American Studies Association (ASA), 2009 – present.
Publications and Presentations
“Inscribing the Surfaces of the City,” paper presented at PSi #16, Toronto, 2010.
Live writing on Performa 09, Critical Correspondence, Movement Research Publishing, 2009.
Catalogue essay, The ARCHEOGRAPHY PROJECT Series, Exhibition Catalogue, Superfront Gallery, 2009.
“Shifting Site, Affective Virtuosity: Meditations on a Post-Urban Parking Garage,” paper presented at American Studies Association Annual Conference, Washington DC, 2009.
“Melting the Mirror,” paper presented at Dance Across the Boards Conference, New York University, 2009.
“Curating a Collision,” IN Dance, July 2008.
Teaching Experience
Contemporary Experimental Choreography, Performance Studies, New York University, fall 2011.
Advanced Modern Technique Lab, Maggie Allesee Department of Dance, Wayne State University, winter 2011.
Intermediate Modern Technique Lab, Maggie Allesee Department of Dance, Wayne State University, winter 2011, spring 2011.
Masters Thesis Writing Workshop, New York University, spring 2010.
Graduate Teaching Assistant, New York University, 2008 – 2010.
Workshops and residency, Dance department, MIT, MA, Dec 2010.
Lecture and Studio Visits, Pacific Northwest College of Art, Sept 2010.
Dancing for Dancers, Pieter PASD, Los Angeles, CA, August 2010.
Moving Textures workshop, ClassClassClass, NYC, spring 2010.
Dancing Body/Site workshop, ClassClassClass, NYC, spring 2009.
Site-specific dance workshop at Judson Memorial Church, Movement Research Festival, NYC, spring 2008.
Workshop, Farmlab, Los Angeles, CA, summer 2008.
Of Body/Site workshop, American Dance Festival, Durham, NC, summer 2007.
Yoga instructor, various studios and private clients, San Francisco, New York, 2004 – 2010.
Choreographic Works
NUT, 2010/2011, with MGM, Cambridge, Detroit, LA, NYC
Oneness: Making it with Love, 2010, with MGM, New York and West Coast Tour
Endless Pace, 2009, with Davide Balula, New York, Toronto, Paris
Easy Royce, 2009, with MGM, New York
Royce, 2009, with MGM, Detroit
Dajointe, 2009, with MGM, New York
Kilterstase, 2009, Archeography IV with Live Architecture Network, New York
Tonight, 2008, with MGM, New York
Bell/Garcia, 2008, New York
New Gree, 2008, with MGM, New York and West Coast Tour
Rindr, 2008, New York
Prism, 2007, New York
Easy Prism, 2007, New York and San Francisco
s/Moustache, 2006, New York
Studlec, 2006, New York
Raydon, 2006, performance and video, San Francisco and Oakland
Small Gallery Gallery Girl, 2006, San Francisco
TCITCW variation, 2005, San Francisco
5 Eyes, 2005, with Hope Mohr, San Francisco
TCITCW, 2005, New York
Back to you Stanley… Are We In Vienna Yet?, 2005, with Joshua Zimmermann, San Francisco
Aether, 2005, with Dillon de Give, video, Marin Headlands, CA
FETE, 2005, site-specific performance, San Francisco
TCITCW solo, 2005, site-specific performance, San Francisco
ShHe Knew, 2005, New York
Peacocks, 2005, site-specific performance, San Francisco
Kinderglow, 2004, performance installation, San Francisco
Untitled, 2004, with Phoebe Seligman, performance installation, San Francisco
Yellow Sidewalk, 2004, site-specific performance, San Francisco
Who Me House, 2004, site-specific performance,15 nights, San Francisco
3 x Improvisation, 2003, with Joshua Zimmermann, Brussels
Interactive Circle Dance, 2002, with Joshua Zimmermann, New York
Crying, 2001, with Joshua Zimmermann, New York
Selected Performances and Exhibitions
2011
Candy Mountain (with Walter Dundervill)
Dance Theater Workshop, New York, NY
NUT (with MGM)
The Kitchen, New York, NY
NUT
Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD)
(projected)
NUT
Samson Projects, Boston, MA
(projected)
Performa ’11
Queens Museum, Queens, New York
(projected)
Endless Pace
Centre Pompidou, Paris
2010
NUT
Kresge Theater, MIT, Cambridge, MA
Performances for No One
Various locations, MIT, Cambridge, MA
Detroit Evening (with MGM)
Creative Time Pavilion, Miami Art Basel
Vault (with Façade/Fasad)
PS1, Long Island City, New York
The Dancers (with MGM)
Turin, Italy
Gallery Exhibition (with MGM)
Calicoon Fine Arts, Calicoon, NY
Endless Pace (with Davide Balula)
Nuit Blanche, Toronto, ON
Ondinimiddlenowhere (with MGM)
Highways, Santa Monica, CA
Oneness: Making it with Love
Facade/Fasad, Brooklyn, NY
In the Midst (directed by Valeska Soares)
Eleven Rivington Gallery, New York, NY
Dance Gives Drama
Danspace Project at St. Marks Church, New York, NY
2009
Endless Pace (with Davide Balula)
Performa 09, New York, NY
Tonight (with XXX Macarena)
The Kitchen, New York, NY
Jandek
Eisner Theater, New York University, New York, NY
Boffo: Objective Affection
Brooklyn, NY
Royce
555 Studios and Gallery, Detroit, MI
Tonight
Calicoon Fine Arts, Calicoon, NY
New Gree (courtesy of Tracy Williams and Alex Katz)
PaceWildenstein Gallery, New York, NY
Tonight and dajointe
Jack Hanley Gallery, New York, NY
Archeography IV, Movement Research Festival
Superfront Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
2008
Democracy Now
Park Avenue Armory, New York, NY
Bell/Garcia
Glasslands, Brooklyn
MGM Tour, 44 performances, 6 weeks, multiple venues
New York, NY; Detroit, MI; Los Angeles, CA; Big Sur, CA; Bay Area, CA; Sonoma County, CA; Portland, OR
Austrian Cultural Forum: Transversality Lab, Movement Research Festival
Judson Memorial Church, New York, NY
Jandek
Lydia Mendellson Theater, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
Body Blend
Dixon Place, New York, NY
2007
MGM Tour: 35 performances, 5 weeks, multiple venues
American Dance Festival, Durham, NC; Los Angeles, CA; Big Sur, CA; Bay Area, CA; Sonoma County, CA; Portland, OR; Olympia, WA
Prism
Judson Memorial Church, New York, NY
Dress Up Show
Chocolate Factory, Long Island City, NY
Individual Viewing Experience
Space Space, Brooklyn, NY
Build/Decay
The Tank, New York, NY
3 Pieces
San Francisco, CA
2006
AUNTS
The Event Center, Brooklyn, NY
OtherDANCE Festival
Lobot Gallery, Oakland, CA; Warehouse 1310, San Francisco, CA
All Dance No Tech, West Wave Dance Festival
ODC Theater, San Francisco, CA
Small Gallery Gallery Girl
49 Geary, San Francisco, CA
TCITCW variation
Counterpulse Theater, San Francisco
Aether
CineDans Library, Amsterdam; Center for Contemporary Art, Santa Fe, NM
2005
PAPER!AWESOME!
Pigman Gallery, San Francisco
Shelter Exhibition
Million Fishes Gallery, San Francisco, CA
ShHe Knew
Cinders Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
Peacocks
Adobe Books and Backroom Gallery, San Francisco, CA
Barbie/Speed/Graffiti
Million Fishes Gallery, San Francisco, CA; Shanghai, China
2004
Who Me House
Million Fishes Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2003
3 x Improvisation
Rosas Theater, Brussels
2002
Off-Spring Festival
New York, NY
2001
Off-Spring Festival
New York, NY
Residencies, Curatorial and Other Projects
2010
Residency, MIT, Dance Department, Boston, MA
Residency, The Wooden Floor, Orange County, CA
2009
Residency, 555 Studios and Gallery, Detroit, MI
2008
Curator, Collision, Mission Creek Music Festival, New Langton Arts, San Francisco, CA
Participant, Into the Folds, philosophy and movement laboratory with Dr. Erin Manning, Brian Massumi and Steven Shaviro, Montréal
Participant, iLAND: Dead Horse Bay, Brooklyn
2007
Participant, March to Marfa, Marfa, TX
2006
Participant, iLAND: The Language of the Listening Body, New York, NY
Writer, AUNTS manifesto
Curator and producer, OtherDANCE Festival, San Francisco and Oakland, CA
2003-2006
Founding member and yoga studio director, Million Fishes Art Collective, Yoga Studio and Galleries, Not for profit (501)(c)(3), San Francisco
2004-2005
Administrator and staff archivist, Margaret Jenkins Dance Company, San Francisco
2003
Residency, P.A.R.T.S., Brussels
Company Performance Experience
2005-ongoing
Modern Garage Movement (aka MGM or MGM Grand), with Jmy Leary, Paige Martin, New York, Los Angeles, Detroit
2009-ongoing
Walter Dundervill, New York, NY
2010-ongoing
Façade/Fasad, Gabriel Rivera, New York
2010
Paige Martin, New York
2007-2009
Nancy Garcia, New York
2006
Kathleen Hermesdorf, San Francisco, CA
2001-2004
David Hurwith/Antediluvians, New York, NY and Northampton, MA
1998-1999
Labayen Dance/SF, San Francisco
1996-1999
Mel Wong Dance Company, Santa Cruz and San Francisco, CA
Press
Roslyn Sulcas, "Watch It Tonight, Consider It Tomorrow," New York Times, April 21, 2011
"Biba Bell, Jmy Leary, and Piage Martin of Modern Garage Movement (aka MGM Grand) in conversation with Nicole Daunic," Critical Correspondence, movementresearch.org, April 17, 2011.
Gia Kourlas, "MGM Grand: This dynamic trio cracks a NUT at The Kitchen," TimOut New York, April 11, 2011
Maria Grazia Spadero, “BIBA BELL: OLTRE IL LIMITE DELLA CONTEMPORANEITA’,” mg-spadero.com, December 2010
Julia Caplin, “Art Basel Miami’s Big-Buzz 10,” New York Times, Nov 26, 2010
Michael Wilson, “Park Life,” Scene & Herd, artforum.com July 2010
Leanne Rae Wierzba, “MGM,” Under the Influence Magazine, Fall/Winter 2009/2010
Sandy Tomcho, “Callicoon Exhibit Buoyed by dance troupe,” Go!, June/July 2009
Claudia La Rocco, “New Classes Fill New Needs in Movement,” New York Times, January 30, 2009
Olive McKeon, “Gree,” Ballet ~ Dance Magazine, August 2008
Gia Kourlas, “Play Nice,” TimeOut New York, April 2008
“Eyes Wide Shut: Modern Garage Movement dances in Detroit,” MetroTimes, July 2008
“Underground dance? Plus a duo times three,” Arcata Eye, 3:38, July 3, 2007
Noelle Valdivia, “Garage Inc.: Artists and Entrepreneurs ReZone Their Car Holes,” Intersection Magazine, Spring 2007
Mirah Kang, “New York ladies bring reggaeton and rainbows to traditional car-storage spots,” Venus Magazine, Spring 2007
Sophie Landres, “Backyard Troubadours,” New York Foundation for the Arts (nyfa.org), 2006
Reyhan Harmanci, “Mix It Up: OtherDANCE Festival Performances Bring Together Art and Dance to Fill and Warehouse,” San Francisco Chronicle, May 4, 2006.
Alan Bamburger, “San Francisco Art Galleries Openings,” artbusiness.com, March 2, 2006
Alan Bamburger, “San Francisco Art Gallery Openings,” artbusiness.com, January 2005
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