BIO (ENGLISH)
Dorian Wood (b. 1975, pronouns: she/her/they/them) is a multidisciplinary artist based in Los Angeles. Her intent of “infecting” spaces and ideologies with her artistic practice is born from a desire to challenge traditions and systems that have contributed to the marginalization of people.
Wood has performed at institutions that include The Broad, Los Angeles, CA (2018), REDCAT, Los Angeles, CA (2019), Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions, CA (2010), Museo Nacional Del Prado, Madrid, Spain (2019), the City Hall of Madrid, Spain (2015), Teatro de la Ciudad Esperanza Iris, Mexico City, Mexico (2019), Museum Folkwang, Essen, Germany (2017), Mousonturm, Frankfurt, Germany (2014), Kampnagel, Hamburg, Germany (2014) and Moods, Zurich, Switzerland (2019), and at festivals that include Pacific Standard Time, Los Angeles, CA (2011), OUTsider Fest, Austin, TX (2019), Festival Cruilla, Barcelona, Spain (2017), WorldPride Madrid, Spain (2017), Festivals Kometa, Riga, Latvia (2016), Moers Festival, Germany (2017), Cully Jazz Festival, Switzerland (2015) and Saint Ghetto Festival, Bern, Switzerland (2017).
From 2019 to 2020, Wood completed several successful international tours with their chamber orchestra tribute to Chavela Vargas, XAVELA LUX AETERNA. In 2022, Wood debuted their tribute to the singer Lhasa De Sela, entitled LHASA, at the Festival Internacional de Arte Sacro in Madrid, in collaboration with singer Carmina Escobar and composer Adrián Cortés. That same year, Wood presented Mares Ocultos, a multimedia chamber music project exploring the nature of male heterosexuality, at the Institute of Contemporary Art/Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. In 2023, Wood premiered the 12-hour composition/installation Canto de Todes at REDCAT in Los Angeles.
As a visual artist, Wood has created illustrations and video installations that have been exhibited in galleries around the world, including Vincent Price Art Museum, Los Angeles (2022), La Carboneria, Huesca, Spain (2020), Fierman Gallery, New York (2020) and the Queer Biennial, Los Angeles (2018). They have also directed several short films, among them "The angel" (2023), Low's "Disappearing" video (2021), “American Savagery” (2021), “FAF” (2021), “The World’s Gone Beautiful” (2020), “PAISA” (2019, co-directed with Graham Kolbeins), “O” (2014) and “La Cara Infinita” (2013).
Wood is a recipient of a Los Angeles County Performing Arts Recovery Grant (2023), a NALAC Fund for the Arts Award (2023), a Creative Capital Award (2020) and an Art Matters Foundation grant (2020), and a past artist-in-residence at MacDowell Residency, Peterborough, New Hampshire (2022), Loghaven Artist Residency, Knoxville, Tennessee (2022), Building Bridges Art Exchange, Santa Monica, California (2020), Etopia, Centro de Arte y Tecnologia, under the FUGA program, Zaragoza, Spain (2019) and MASS Gallery, Austin, Texas (2017). They have been invited as a visiting artist to speak at institutions that include NYU (2023), Museu de Bellas Artes de Castelló (2023), Cal State San Marcos (2022), Northwestern University (2021), Occidental College (2019), Syracuse University (2020), UCLA (2021), CalArts School of Music (2021) and Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (2020).
Wood has released over a dozen recordings, among them the albums You are clearly in perversion (with Thor Harris) (Astral Editions, 2023), Excesiva (Dragon's Eye Recordings, 2023), Invasiva (Dragon's Eye Recordings, 2022), ARDOR (Independent, 2020), REACTOR (Independent, 2020), XALÁ (Atonal Industries, 2017), Down, The Dirty Roof (Atonal Industries, 2013), Rattle Rattle (Atonal Industries, 2013), Brutus (Independent, 2010) and BOLKA (Independent, 2007).
BIO (ESPAÑOL)
Dorian Wood (n. 1975, pronombres: ella/elle) es una artista multidisciplinaria basada en Los Ángeles. Su intención de “infectar” espacios e ideologías con su práctica artística nace de un deseo de desafiar tradiciones y sistemas que han contribuido a la marginalización de la gente.
Wood ha actuado en instituciones que incluyen The Broad, Los Ángeles, CA (2018), REDCAT, Los Ángeles, CA (2019), Los Ángeles Contemporary Exhibitions, CA (2010), Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid, España (2019), Ayuntamiento de Madrid, España (2015), Teatro de la Ciudad Esperanza Iris, Ciudad de México, México (2019), Museo Folkwang, Essen, Alemania (2017), Mousonturm, Frankfurt, Alemania (2014), Kampnagel, Hamburgo, Alemania (2014) y Moods, Zurich, Suiza (2019), y en festivales que incluyen Pacific Standard Time, Los Ángeles, CA (2011), OUTsider Fest, Austin, TX (2019), Festival Cruilla, Barcelona, España (2017), WorldPride Madrid, España (2017), Festivals Kometa, Riga, Letonia (2016), Moers Festival, Alemania (2017), Cully Jazz Festival, Suiza (2015) y Saint Ghetto Festival, Berna, Suiza (2017).
De 2019 a 2020, Wood completó varias giras internacionales con su orquesta de cámara en homenaje a Chavela Vargas, XAVELA LUX AETERNA. En 2022, Wood debutó su tributo a la cantante Lhasa De Sela, titulado LHASA, en el Festival Internacional de Arte Sacro in Madrid, en colaboración con la cantante Carmina Escobar y el compositor Adrián Cortés. Ese mismo año, Wood presentó Mares Ocultos, un proyecto multimedia de música de cámara que explora la naturaleza de la heterosexualidad masculina, en el Institute of Contemporary Art/Virginia Commonwealth University en Richmond, Virginia. En 2023, Wood estrenó su composición/instalación de 12 horas, Canto de Todes, en REDCAT en Los Ángeles.
Como artista visual, Wood ha creado ilustraciones y videoinstalaciones que se han exhibido en varias galerías internacionales, incluyendo Vincent Price Art Museum, Los Angeles, USA (2022), La Carboneria, Huesca, España (2020), Fierman Gallery, Nueva York, USA (2020) y el Queer Biennial, Los Angeles, USA (2018). También ha dirigido varios cortometrajes, entre ellos "The angel" (2023), el video "Disappearing" para la banda Low (2021), “American Savagery” (2021), “FAF” (2021), “The World's Gone Beautiful” (2020), “PAISA” (2019, codirigido con Graham Kolbeins), “ O ”(2014) y“ La Cara Infinita ”(2013).
Wood recibió la subvención de Los Angeles County Performing Arts Recovery Grant (2023), el premio NALAC Fund for the Arts Award (2023), el premio Creative Capital Award (2020) y la subvención de Art Matters Foundation (2020), y fue artista residente en MacDowell Residency, Peterborough, New Hampshire (2022), Loghaven Artist Residency, Knoxville, Tennessee (2022), Building Bridges Art Exchange, Santa Monica, California (2020), Etopia, Centro de Arte y Tecnologia, bajo el programa FUGA, Zaragoza, España (2019) y MASS Gallery, Austin, Texas (2017). Ha dado charlas como artista invitada en instituciones que incluyen NYU (2023), Museu de Bellas Artes de Castelló (2023), Cal State San Marcos (2022), Northwestern University (2021), Occidental College (2019), Syracuse University (2020), UCLA (2021), CalArts School of Music (2021) e Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Ángeles (2020).
Wood ha lanzado más de una docena de grabaciones, entre ellas los álbumes You are clearly in perversion (con Thor Harris) (Astral Editions, 2023), Excesiva (Dragon's Eye Recordings, 2023), Invasiva (Dragon's Eye Recordings, 2022), ARDOR (Independiente, 2020), REACTOR (Independiente, 2020), XALÁ (Atonal Industries, 2017), Down, The Dirty Roof (Atonal Industries, 2013), Rattle Rattle (Atonal Industries, 2013), Brutus (Independiente, 2010) y BOLKA (Independiente, 2007).
P R E S S
"Conservatories and gay bars in Los Angeles were the places where Dorian Wood began to develop his particular way of looking at music...and this, combined with the gifts of nature (a powerful voice and an innate ability to deliver intense performances), have made them an artist that is both transcendental and unclassifiable." - ROLLING STONE (Spain)
"The performer, who bends genres as much as [they] bend gender, in performances that are a little bit torch song and a lot avant-garde, delivers vocals that offer sublime beauty and pain." - LOS ANGELES TIMES
"A fearless artist and performer whose voice inhabits a room like a choir of ghosts." - LA WEEKLY
"[Her voice] sounds like Nina Simone from the bowels of a shipwreck." - AUSTIN CHRONICLE
"A cutting edge sound that respectfully acknowledges the folk music of [their] birth, Dorian is an artist who does not stop...[their] life is the rhythm of [their] creative impetus." - GQ (Mexico)
"Their music transcends and shakes you to the core." - INSTINCT MAGAZINE
"Dorian Wood is a force of nature, and not merely due to [their] magnificent presence, but because [their] concerts are like a meteor shower and the four elements." - MONDOSONORO (Spain)