Clara Zarza

Background

About Clara Zarza

Clara Zarza is an art historian and curator specialized in Contemporary Installation Art, Visual Theory and Material Culture. Her interdisciplinary research has also relied on literary, anthropological and philosophical studies on identity, experience, intimacy and the autobiographical subject, as well as the history of design and material culture. PhD in Art History from Complutense University of Madrid (UCM) and JAEPre predoctoral fellow (2009-2013) of the Institute of Language, Literature and Anthropology at the Center for Human and Social Sciences (CCHS-CSIC, Madrid). Her thesis ‘Intimate Spaces. Autobiographical Modes and Materials present in the 1990s Euroamerican Art Practices’ was awarded European Doctor Mention and Outstanding PhD Award in Art History for best thesis of the year 2013-2014 (UCM).She currently holds a tenure track position at IE University School of Architecture and Design. In addition to her research and teaching activity at IE University, she has taught courses, workshops, and seminars on contemporary art and material culture at various institutions such as the Centro de Arte 2 de Mayo or La Casa Encendida, creating educational experiences with an emphasis on audience engagement and participation.In recent years she has curated and coordinated the exhibition and performance show ‘Bobby Baker: Jars of Chutney’ (22 February – 21 April 2019, La Casa Encendida, Madrid) along with the documentary piece that accompanied the show. She continues to collaborate with Bobby Baker and her team as a member of Daily Life Ltd.’s Curatorial Advisory Group.She is currently working on a book project on Installation Art entitled Intimate and Spectacular Spaces.