RESIDENCY | LOS ANGELES | 2020–2021
Nao Bustamante
Nao Bustamante performs "America, the beautiful” 2013, photo credit: Lorie Novak
Nao Bustamante's precarious practice encompasses performance art, video installation, filmmaking, sculpture and writing. Bustamante has presented in Galleries, Museums, Universities and underground sites around the world. In 2020 Bustamante’s forthcoming 360º film, “The Wooden People” received a producing grant from the Mike Kelley Foundation and will be presented at REDCAT in 2021. Bustamante is an alum of the San Francisco Art Institute, and in 2020 she was awarded an honorary doctorate degree from her alma mater. She is a Professor at the USC Roski School of Art and Design. There, she also serves as the Director of the MFA in Art.
“The Wooden People is a VR mini-series that has a performance art core, with a telenovela vibe. Each episode culminates in a ‘live’ happening or ritual. This melodramatic ‘soap’ follows archetypal characters from the Mayan origin myth, presented as a sub-culture group, set in the backdrop of contemporary Los Angeles. The series will be distributed online, however there will be a series of live events that will accompany the release of the project.”