Althea Rao

I am a multiform conceptual artist with a social practice. I approach systems and structures are products of design that shape and get shaped by human experience. My works examine this cyclic causal relationship and study how ethical values are institutionalized in the process, via the lens of technology, social justice and capitalism.

My works exist as codes of conduct, performative interventions, multimedia installations and their documentation. I perform absurd interpretations of ethical values and negotiate idealism within a fully diverse society, while knowingly exhibit a willingness to count on human agency to see change for the better.

Currently, I focus on revealing states of institutionalized disempowerment, facilitating radical community healing, and designing systems for intrinsic accountability.

MFA Temple University
BA Waseda University
BA Fudan University

Vagina Chorus
2020 Artist Bash, Barnes Foundation, Philadelphia, PA upcoming
2020 Artspace New Haven, New Haven, CT upcoming
2019 City-Wide Open Studios, New Haven, CT
Touch: the Dance
2016 Sanctuary Series, Fleisher Art Memorial, Philadelphia, PA
Solo Shows
Pillar of Salt
2019 By the People Festival, Autoshop Union Market, Washington DC
Group Exhibitions

The Hands that Feed Us, Drawing
2020 Small Works, Wedge Studio, Brooklyn, NY
Nest, Light Sculpture
Paralellism, IA&A Hillyer, Washington, DC
Blindfold, Multimedia Installation
Surface Tensions, Group Exhibition, Abington Art Center, Abington, PA
Panel Discussion / Workshop / Activism

Panelist, Emerging Womxn Artists, Hirshhorn Museum, Washington, DC
Moderator, Finding your Platform and Womxning It, Smithsonian Art and Industry Building, Washington, DC
Campaign Representative, Menstrual Equity Bill Lobbying Day organized by Platform, Capitol Hill, Washington, DC