Jaleesa Johnston is an interdisciplinary artist, educator and independent curator currently living and working in the Pacific Northwest. She holds a BA from Vassar College, an MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute and an MA from the University of Bergen in Norway. Her interdisciplinary art practice explores the ruptured space between the subjectivity and objectivity of the Black female body. She has been the recipient of the AICAD Post-Graduate Teaching Fellowship, Centrum’s Emerging Artist Residency, Open Signal’s New Media Fellowship, Performance Works NW Alembic Artist Residency and an Artist Trust Fellowship Award.  Jaleesa also works as Head of Public Programs and Engagement in the Learning and Community Partnerships Department at the Portland Art Museum. Her curatorial interests and research include the residual imprint of ephemeral works in institutional spaces, with a focus on Black performance work.