Artist Profile: Katie Avila Loughmiller

(Photo from performance piece, perception. 2016, Milwaukee, WI)

Katie Avila Loughmiller, raised in Boston and now based in Milwaukee, WI, is an interdisciplinary social practice artist, writer, educator, curator and activist. Avila Loughmiller received her undergraduate degree at the Gallatin School of Individualized Study at New York University and completed her Master of Fine Arts degree in the Public Practice program at Otis College of Art & Design. In the last 5 years, she has founded three different collectives: LUNA (Latinas Unidas en las Artes), a Latinx artist collective; Heard Space, a multi-media performing arts collective led by women of color; and Milwaukee Action Intersection, a social justice organization. Avila Loughmiller also co-hosts a comedy radio show (We Heard We’re Funny) on Riverwest Radio. Her individual artistic practice has allowed her to perform across the country and also participate in artist residencies, most notably at Santa Fe Art Institute, Atlantic Center for the Arts, Vermont Studio Center and Wildacres Residency Program. She served as the Arts Project Coordinator for the Milwaukee Public Library overseeing the two year National Endowment for the Arts Our Town grant at the Mitchell Street Branch from 2018-2019. Avila Loughmiller has taught in various educational settings in South Africa, New York City, Los Angeles, Boston and currently teaches in the theatre department at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. This past year, Avila Loughmiller started working as the Coordinating Producer on a feature-length documentary film about art critics called Out of the Picture.

1) What are the challenges and triumphs you have experienced in regard to being able to collaborate with other artists of color based in the Midwest?

I’m not from the midwest originally, I grew up and lived mostly on the east coast and lived for a few years in LA. In 2016, I was offered an opportunity to work on a project in Milwaukee with a former grad school professor. I was quickly introduced to her network in Milwaukee, which happened to be pretty diverse. It really gave me a great head start to connect and collaborate with other artists of color. In fact, I am still connected to many of those artists I met that summer. One of them has become a longtime collaborator of mine.

Through this network, I was able to find out about opportunities with different arts organizations in the city. I noticed almost immediately, however, the lack of diversity working for these organizations. It was an incredible challenge to bring up my concerns to white leadership. I wasn’t met with much support to fix the glaring problem. In response to this, I was extremely interested in expanding my own network of artists of color. This led to me co-founding the Latinx artist collective, LUNA (Latinas Unidas en las Artes) and responding to a call for a women of color performing arts collective which became Heard Space. I would say both groups have been a tremendous triumph for me! I have met so many incredible Latinx and other BIPOC artists because of these collectives. While they keep me sane, it’s also incredibly hard work. There is a lot of unseen labor that goes into making these collectives what they are and I’m not sure people fully realize that. I often feel the desire to branch out or expand these groups beyond Milwaukee to other parts of the midwest. At the beginning of 2020, I was actually really hoping that I could make better connections between my Madison and Milwaukee networks. In some ways, it feels like I have to start all over in Milwaukee to reconnect with folks as the pandemic really impacted on how we could connect and work together.

(Katie with artist Whitney Salgado during a LUNA mural install at Milwaukee County Courthouse. )

2) Which of the following words accurately reflect themes you have explored creatively: 'dialogue,' 'disrupt' or 'decolonize'?

All of these words speak to me! I’ll start with ‘dialogue’ because this is one of the most important aspects of my work. I’m not a traditional artist in which I have a centralized focus on how I create—I don’t have a painting or photography practice. Sometimes I make objects; sometimes I write; sometimes I perform; sometimes I make videos; and sometimes I combine mediums. But no matter what I create, my goal is always to spark dialogue. I think art has the power to create a space where we can ask questions and have nuanced conversations. This has always been important to me but with the rise of social media and how we use social media, it feels even more pressing. There doesn’t seem to be a lot of listening that goes on in social media so I think art allows for a lot more listening and reflection which in turn, can lead to a lot more productive dialogue.

Disruption and decolonization is central to my work as well, especially with the work I do with Heard Space and LUNA. I think we are still at a point in our society that having an exhibition or performance that only features BIPOC artists is a disruption. For so long, no one commented on all the shows that featured zero BIPOC artists and too many institutions applaud themselves for doing the bare minimum to include one or two of us. I do believe that disruption must happen for real change to occur. And I do think this disruption leads to decolonization which is necessary for everyone’s success—and this includes white folks. I am a true believer in collective and collaborative models because it dismantles the idea that we must compete. I always say that competition is one of the biggest tools of white supremacy—the idea that there is only room for a few of us at the top is a myth I refuse to buy into anymore. There is a lot of room at the top but only if we make room for each other and find ways to work together.

3) Any work or projects you are looking forward to pursuing (or finishing) this year?

I am really excited about the film I am working on as the Coordinating Producer called Out of the Picture which is about art critics. Throughout my education, I have had to read a lot of art criticism. But I never felt like art criticism was for me. I was assigned a lot of art criticism written by white critics writing about white artists. I had to do my own digging to find criticism that even felt relevant to me. By working on this film, I am learning more about the field, getting to meet/listen to critics I have heard of in addition to ones I’m just learning about now. This has really inspired me because I am excited to learn how art criticism is changing.

I am also really excited about Heard Space’s The System, a reimagined short-play of the Aesop fable “The Crow and the Pitcher” for the whole family! The modernized version alludes to class issues, unjust systems and societies, and access to clean water. Heard Space’s The System plays on the idea that every small step creates a bigger impact and reminds us that, with a little imagination, there is always a new way to solve old problems. We were supposed to produce this play in 2020, but like most things, it got canceled. Our in-person rehearsals for this show start soon and I am so excited to actually see and play with my Heard Space collaborators in person again after over a year of working virtually! (*This show will be performed at 2pm on August 7, 2021 at Harbor View Plaza.)

(Heard Space virtual performance, A Very Scary Holiday Kind of Show, 2020)

4) Fave installation, exhibition, writing &/or performance by another artist that you've recently encountered?

Not only am I blown away by Jenie Gao and her art, she has also been an important voice in the art world, particularly in Wisconsin. She shares so much through her instagram but also on her blog—her art and writing is incredibly vulnerable while also ensuring her viewers/readers can walk away with something tangible to think about or even more importantly, act on. She seriously inspires me every single day. 

I am also really excited about Nicole Acosta’s HOOPS portrait project. This is something she started in LUNA back in 2019. We had an idea for a HOOPS themed exhibition and she offered to do a photoshoot of the LUNA artists in hoop earrings to act as promotion for the show. One, I don’t think I have ever had a better photo taken of me than the one Nicole took—so to model for her was an incredible experience! And to see where she has taken this project, from Milwaukee, to Chicago and New York—it’s really inspiring and exciting! Each and every photograph is not only beautiful but fierce as hell! She also gathered stories of what wearing hoops meant to her subjects she was photographing and I loved this additional layer to this project. I think this project is incredibly empowering and important. 

Lastly, while I didn’t see this piece in person, I was blown away by the image of ‘A song of ascents’ by Abigail Lucien. Abigail made this work in honor of her father who passed away due to COVID and it is a stunning sculptural tribute. There are not a lot of works that take my breath away but this one did -- and I can’t even really find the words to describe how impactful seeing this work was for me. I can only imagine what it would be like to see it in person. The emotion in this work, but also much of her work, is palpable for the viewer. I think that’s a really hard thing to do. Yet Abigail seems to do it effortlessly.