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A bit about Xiomara Forbez
I am an ideasmith and multidisciplinary artist. I was born and raised in Miami, FL and spent most Christmases and summers with my family in Queens, NY. College started my educational migration - moving from Miami to Boston, MA. I studied abroad in Grenoble, France for a year and then returned to Boston where I worked as a Fiscal Administrator at Boston University and later as a Research Management Specialist at Harvard University. Lured by the need to pursue dance fulltime, I moved to Riverside, CA where I earned my PhD in Critical Dance Studies. I now live and work back in my hometown, Miami.
My Caribbean family and friends taught me how to dance merengue, salsa, bachata, Colombian cumbia, reggaeton, hip hop, and dancehall. I have also studied ballet, horton, graham, and I am now learning hula kahiko and hula auana.
My primary medium is ideas that I manifest through tracings, videos, cross-stitch, photos, poetry, performances, installations, and designed experiences. I work sola (Spanish for alone) and ensemble (French for together), thriving in collaborative community.
Education
2022
PhD Critical Dance Studies, University of California, Riverside (UCR)
2011
BA Linguistics, Boston University
BA French Language and Literature, Boston University
Awards | Fellowships
Miami Individual Artist Grant, 2023-2024
Green Space Miami DISplace Open Call Grant, 2023
Camargo Foundation Fellowship, Multidisciplinary Artist, 2022
UC Humanities Graduate Fellow, 2022
UCR Center for Ideas and Society Dissertation Writing Fellowship, 2022
Gluck Fellowship for the Arts, Dance, 2021
UCR Outstanding Teaching Award in Media and Cultural Studies, 2020
Gluck Fellowship for the Arts, Dance, 2020
Kenyon College Marilyn Yarbrough Dissertation/Teaching Fellowship Finalist, 2019
Gluck Fellowship for the Arts, Dance, 2019
Gluck Fellowship for the Arts, Dance, 2018
Ford Foundation Fellowship, Alternate, 2017
Ford Foundation Fellowship, Honorable Mention, 2017
Gluck Fellowship for the Arts, Dance, 2017
HBCU, HSI, Tribal Colleges Fellowship, Middlebury College, 2017
Gluck Fellowship for the Arts, Dance, 2016
Gluck Fellowship for the Arts, Dance, 2015
UCR Chancellor's Distinguished Fellowship, 2014
Exhibitions | Screenings | Performances
DISplace, Green Space Miami, performance, Jan 2024
DISplace, Green Space Miami, installation, Nov 2023 - Mar 2024
O, Miami Featured Poet, Zip Odes Finale at Vizcaya, 2023
Various Exquisite Mini Situations, live performance, 2022
Exquisite Situations Audience Choice, live performance, 2022
A Long Situation: A Short Film, film, 2022
Exquisite Method, workshop and live performance, 2022
Le Jeu de Camargo, card game, Camargo, France, 2022
Elder Dance Post, dance post card exchange with elders, 2021
Publications
CanvasRebel Interview, 2024
Technical Pursuit (dissertation), 2022
PhD Spotlight, 2022
Productivity Tips for Grad Students, 2020
A Review of Dunagan's Consuming Dance, 2019