Angela Washko is an American new media artist and facilitator based in New York. After nine years as a professor of art at Carnegie Mellon University, she is currently the Catherine B. Heller Collegiate Professor of Art at University of Michigan.[1][2] Washko mobilizes communities and creates new forums for discussions of feminism where they do not exist.[3]

Angela Washko
Born1986 (age 37–38)
Reading, Pennsylvania, United States
Known forNew Media Art Artist, Curator, Facilitator
Notable workPlaying A Girl, Chastity, The Game: The Game
Awards2012–2013 Recipient of the Terminal Award,
2013–2014 Recipient of the Franklin Furnace Archive Fund Grant,
2013 Full Tuition Research Fellowship, University of California, San Diego,
2018 Recipient of the Impact Award at Indiecade,
2020 Recipient of the Creative Capital Award, 2023 United States Artists Fellowship.

Washko is the founder of the Council on Gender Sensitivity and Behavioral Awareness in World of Warcraft to bring attention to and protest the sexist language from players in the game.[4] Washko has been creating performances inside the online video game World of Warcraft (WoW) since 2012 in which she initiates discussions about feminism within the gameplay.[5]

In 2015, Washko presented an ongoing project focused on noted pick-up artist Roosh V, called Banged.[6] The project was initially supported by a Rhizome at the New Museum Internet Art Microgrant.[7] Her video game project "The Game: The Game" premiered in 2018 in a solo exhibition at the Museum of the Moving Image in New York.[8] Johanna Fateman named "The Game: The Game" at Museum of the Moving Image as one of the top ten exhibitions of 2018 for Artforum.[9] Rhizome (organization) added "The Game: The Game" to their Net Art Anthology, a project aiming to preserve historically important works of net art.[10][11]

In 2021, Angela Washko moved into film-making by directing a documentary film called Workhorse Queen.[12] After premiering at Slamdance Film Festival and a long international film festival run, the film was released in June 2022 for television broadcast and streaming on Starz, and additionally became available for VOD on Amazon Prime, AppleTV, Roku, and Vudu.[13] Workhorse Queen is distributed by Breaking Glass Pictures. Washko was the recipient of the Best Documentary Feature award at American Film Festival in Wroclaw, Poland, and the Grand Jury Prize for Documentary at Buffalo International Film Festival.[14][15]

In 2020, Angela Washko was awarded the Creative Capital Award for her new video game project "Mother, Player."[16] In 2023, she received the United States Artists Fellowship in the Media category.[17]

Work

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In 2014, Creative Time commissioned an essay from Washko on her findings as the self-founded Council on Gender Sensitivity and Behavioral Awareness in World of Warcraft.

She is the first person to ever sell a Vine video.[18] The video was bought by Dutch art advisor, curator and collector Myriam Vanneschi for $200 at the Moving Image Art Fair. The title, "Tits on Tits on Ikea" was an extension to a Vine selected as a runner-up in a project called "The Shortest Video Art Ever Sold," curated by Marina Galperina and Kyle Chayka, submitted to the #VeryShortFilmFest.

Her video work "Chastity" won the Terminal Award from the Center of Excellence in the Creative Arts at Austin Peay State University.[19] She was the 2013 to 2014 Recipient of the Franklin Furnace Fund Grant for her World of Warcraft performances.[20] In 2020, she was awarded the Creative Capital Award.[21]

In 2018, she exhibited her new work "The Game: The Game" at the Museum of the Moving Image.[22] The Game: The Game takes the form of a dating simulator, pitting you against six men who are aggressively vying for your attention at a bar. "The Game: The Game" additionally won the 2018 Impact Award at Indiecade.[23]

In 2021, Angela Washko's first feature-length documentary film about Mrs. Kasha Davis and the Rochester drag community, Workhorse Queen, premiered at the Slamdance Film Festival.[24]

Art practice

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Washko's interdisciplinary practice of performance, video, and installation investigates public opinion regarding proper etiquette, appropriate lifestyle choices, limited gender designations.[25] She works in mostly online public spaces of contemporary American culture in order to reach a larger audience with a feminist discourse.[26] Her work has been exhibited by the Museum of the Moving Image (London) in the National #Selfie Portrait Gallery,[27] Biennial of the Americas in The World is !Flat, Denver Digerati in Denver, Colorado,[28] Transfer Gallery in Brooklyn, New York,[29] and Super Art Moderne Museum: Spamm.[30]

She was a contributing writer for Animal NY.[31]

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Washko has organized exhibitions and programs at the University of California, San Diego, New York University, Flux Factory, and Temple University's Tyler School of Art.[citation needed] She curates and compiles A Feminist Art Movement Online, an archive of artists, writers, curators, and cultural producers with various practices addressing issues regarding gendered experiences. These practitioners primarily make and/or distribute their work online and contribute to a shift in making the internet a more inclusive space for women and their cultural work.[32] She was the Department Events Coordinator of Visual Arts at the University of California, San Diego until 2015.[citation needed] She has written for dpi Magazine.[33] In 2013 she hosted the podcast "A Cups" with new media artist Ann Hirsch, made possible by the Radiohive collective[34] in which they interviewed guests such as Nate Hill, Carla Gannis, Chris Gethard, and Genevieve Belleveau. In 2017, she curated the exhibition "Hacking/Modding/Remixing as Feminist Protest" at the Miller Gallery at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.[35]

Education

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Washko graduated in 2009 from Tyler School of Art of Temple University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting/Drawing/Sculpture.[citation needed] She studied at the Post Graduate Apprentice Program at The Fabric Workshop and Museum in 2009.[citation needed] She graduated in 2015 with a Master of Fine Arts in Visual Art from the University of California, San Diego.[citation needed]

Exhibitions

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2015

  • The Council on Gender Sensitivity and Behavioral Awareness in World of Warcraft: LIVE, Dixon Place (New York, NY). Presented by Franklin Furnace Archive.[36][37]
  • Memory Burn, July 10 - August 16, 2016, Bitforms Gallery (New York, NY).[38]

2016

  • XXI Triennale International Exhibition: 21st Century Design After Design, Game Video/Art: a Survey, Contemporary Hall Gallery, IULM University (Milan, Italy). Curated by Matteo Bittanti e Vincenzo Trione.[39][40]
  • The 3rd Shenzhen Independent Animation Biennale, Dec 2nd, 2016 - March 2, 2017, C2 Space, OCT-LOFT (Shenzhen, China).[41]
  • Performing in Public (Four Years of Ephemeral Actions in World of Warcraft), Gallery@CALIT2 at University of California - San Diego.[42]
  • The Game: The Game, Transfer Gallery (New York, NY).[43][44]

2017

  • The Game: The Game 2.0, Squeaky Wheel Film and Media Arts Center (Buffalo, NY). Solo exhibition.[45]
  • Haunted Machines and Wicked Problems, Impakt Festival (Utrecht, NL).[46]
  • Nonlinear Perspectives, Gray Area Foundation for Arts and Technology (San Francisco, CA).[47]
  • Survival Rates In Captivity (Free Will Mode #5) (2017), Blinding Pleasures, February 10 - March 18, arebyte Gallery, (London, UK). Curated by Filippo Lorenzin.[48]

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Angela Washko - School of Art | Carnegie Mellon University". School of Art | Carnegie Mellon University. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  2. ^ Crook, Phillip (June 5, 2024). "The School of Art Congratulates Professor Angela Washko on Her New Professorship at the University of Michigan". School of Art | Carnegie Mellon University. Retrieved July 8, 2024.
  3. ^ "Visual Arts Department". UC San Diego. Archived from the original on April 7, 2014. Retrieved April 3, 2014.
  4. ^ Steinhauer, Jillian (January 21, 2013). "Finding Feminism in World of Warcraft". Hyperallergic. Archived from the original on October 25, 2021. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  5. ^ Jansson, Mathias (February 11, 2013). "Interview: Angela Washko's gender playing in WoW". GameScenes. Archived from the original on November 2, 2022. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
  6. ^ Valentine, Ben (April 23, 2015). "What Happens When a Feminist Artist Interviews a Pickup Artist". Hyperallergic. Archived from the original on May 23, 2015. Retrieved March 4, 2017.
  7. ^ Modig, Kimmo (September 16, 2014). "Announcing the 5 Internet Art Microgrants Awardees". Rhizome. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  8. ^ "Angela Washko Plays The Game: The Game". Museum of the Moving Image.
  9. ^ Fateman, Johanna. "Top Ten of 2018". No. December 2018. Artforum. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  10. ^ "The Game: The Game". Rhizome Net Art Anthology. Rhizome at the New Museum. October 27, 2016.
  11. ^ "Retelling The History of Net Art From The 1980s to the 2010s". Rhizome Net Art Anthology. Rhizome at the New Museum.
  12. ^ a b Berger, Laura (February 12, 2021). "Angela Washko Shines a Spotlight on a RuPaul's Drag Race Alum in Slamdance Doc "Workhorse Queen"". Women in Hollywood. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  13. ^ Rabinowitz, Chloe (April 14, 2022). "Breaking Glass Pictures to Release WORKHORSE QUEEN". Broadway World. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  14. ^ a b Vourlias, Christopher (September 5, 2022). "Poland's American Film Festival Unspools 13th Annual Showcase of Contemporary and Classic American Cinema". Variety. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  15. ^ "Workhorse Queen". Buffalo International Film Festival. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  16. ^ "2020 Creative Capital Award Recipients Announced". Artforum. January 15, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  17. ^ Aton, Francesca (January 24, 2023). "United States Artists Fellowships Awarded to Carolina Caycedo, Christine Sun Kim, Guadalup Maravilla, and More". ARTNews. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  18. ^ Holt, Kris (March 12, 2013). "This is the first Vine art ever sold". Daily Dot. Archived from the original on April 12, 2019. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
  19. ^ Jones, Barry (January 18, 2013). "Terminal Award: Chastity by Angela Washko". Terminal. Archived from the original on May 17, 2022. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
  20. ^ "Franklin Furnace Fund Recipients 2013-14". Franklin Furnace. Archived from the original on June 29, 2021.
  21. ^ "Award Year 2020". Creative Capital. 2020. Archived from the original on September 6, 2022. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
  22. ^ "Installation - The Game: The Game". Museum of the Moving Image. 2018. Archived from the original on November 9, 2020. Retrieved March 11, 2019.
  23. ^ "IndieCade Congratulates 2018 Festival Award Winners news". Indie DB. October 15, 2018. Archived from the original on March 18, 2022. Retrieved December 5, 2018.
  24. ^ Berger, Laura (February 12, 2021). "Angela Washko Shines a Spotlight on a "RuPaul's Drag Race" Alum in Slamdance Doc "Workhorse Queen"". Women and Hollywood. Archived from the original on March 15, 2022. Retrieved October 15, 2021.
  25. ^ "UCSD Open Studios / Angela Washko". Ucsdopenstudios.com. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  26. ^ Driever, Juliana (June 26, 2013). "Artist Profile: Angela Washko". Bad at Sports. Archived from the original on December 30, 2019. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  27. ^ "National #Selfie Portrait Gallery". Artsy.net. October 9, 2013. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  28. ^ "Denver Digerati". Denver Digerati. Archived from the original on April 7, 2014. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  29. ^ Alvarez, Ana Cecilia (September 22, 2013). "The Artist of gURLS". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on April 16, 2016. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  30. ^ "Super Art Modern Museum - Spamm - Musee Des Arts Super Modernes / Safari". Spamm.fr. Archived from the original on February 4, 2014. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  31. ^ "About - ANIMAL". Animal. Archived from the original on March 21, 2022. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  32. ^ "A Feminist Art Movement Online". Outofthekitchenarchive.tumblr.com. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  33. ^ "Playing A Girl (The Council on Gender Sensitivity and Behavioral Awareness in World of Warcraft) | .dpi". Dpi.studioxx.org. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  34. ^ "A Cups by Angela Washko and Ann Hirsch on iTunes". Itunes.apple.com. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  35. ^ "Professor Angela Washko Curates "Hacking / Modding / Remixing as Feminist Protest" at Miller Gallery| Carnegie Mellon University". School of Art | Carnegie Mellon University. January 30, 2017. Archived from the original on March 1, 2017. Retrieved February 28, 2017.
  36. ^ Kimball, Whitney (January 5, 2015). "This Week's Must-See Art Events: Best Events of 2015 So Far". Art F City. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  37. ^ Vartanian, Hrag (January 6, 2015). "ArtRx NYC". Hyperallergic. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  38. ^ "Memory Burn - Press Release".
  39. ^ "GAME VIDEO/ART. A SURVEY - Artists". gamevideoart.org.
  40. ^ Bittanti, Matteo, ed. (2016). GAME VIDEO/ART. A SURVEY. Silvana Editoriale. ISBN 9788836634545.
  41. ^ "The 3rd Shenzhen Independent Animation Biennale/Artists". szx3iab.com/. June 7, 2016. Retrieved April 6, 2017.
  42. ^ "Performing in Public (Four Years of Ephemeral Actions in World of Warcraft)". Retrieved April 6, 2017.
  43. ^ "Angela Washko. The Game: The Game".
  44. ^ "Angela Washko. The Game: The Game - Press Release" (PDF).
  45. ^ "Angela Washko at Squeaky Wheel". The Public. October 30, 2017. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  46. ^ "HAUNTED MACHINES & WICKED PROBLEMS EXHIBITION | IMPAKT". Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  47. ^ "Nonlinear Perspectives Exhibition at the 2017 Gray Area Festival". Gray Area. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  48. ^ "Blinding Pleasures / Man Bartlett, Angela Washko and Ben Grosser". arebyte.com. Archived from the original on April 7, 2017. Retrieved April 6, 2017.
  49. ^ "NET ART ANTHOLOGY: The Game: The Game". NET ART ANTHOLOGY: The Game: The Game. October 27, 2016. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  50. ^ Kenney, Jeff (May 10, 2022). "ANGELA WASHKO: POKING THE HIVE". Mason Exhibitions. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  51. ^ Davis, Laura (March 23, 2018). "Sickeningly violent exhibition warns visitors to look away". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  52. ^ DeBianchi, Antonia (February 7, 2018). "Peabody Essex Museum to Open "PlayTime"". Boston Magazine. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  53. ^ "Boston Covers Art in the Internet Age with Region-Wide Exhibitions". ArtfixDaily. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  54. ^ Martens, Todd (October 12, 2018). "He said, she squirmed: The pickup artist game that is the talk of IndieCade and may help us communicate better". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  55. ^ "2018 AWARDS – IndieCade". Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  56. ^ "Indiecade Europe 2018". sprites.fr/ (in French). Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  57. ^ "GAME ART: ANGELA WASKHO'S WEAPONIZING COURTSHIP (2020)". GAMESCENES. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  58. ^ "Angela Washko: Point of View - Announcements - e-flux". www.e-flux.com. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  59. ^ "GAMExCINEMA". Korean Film Archive (in Korean). Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  60. ^ Magazine, express (June 4, 2021). "On Now! Doc Edge Film Festival - Documenting Life". express Magazine. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  61. ^ Althoff, Eric (August 9, 2021). "BENTONVILLE FILM FESTIVAL : "Waikiki," "A Fire Within," "The First Step," "The High Life" and "Workhorse Queen" - Screen Comment". screencomment.com. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  62. ^ "Here is the lineup for the 2021 Milwaukee Film Festival". OnMilwaukee. May 14, 2021. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  63. ^ "Filmmakers discuss record-breaking diversity at the 2021 Florida Film Festival". Orlando Sentinel. April 10, 2021. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  64. ^ "Workhorse Queen | TLVFest". Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  65. ^ Mullen, Pat (August 12, 2021). "Vancouver Queer Film Festival Goes Out and Proud with Sex-Positive Line-up". POV Magazine. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  66. ^ "'WORLDBUILDING' Explores the Intersection of Art and Gaming". Hypebeast. June 23, 2022. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  67. ^ "PAM CUT's Doc-O-Rama Shines a Spotlight on Queer Performers". Willamette Week. September 7, 2022. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  68. ^ Artuu, Redazione (January 28, 2022). "A Roma la mostra MIXED MEDIA". Artuu Magazine | L'Arte per i Millennials (in Italian). Retrieved February 14, 2023.
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