Jenna Bliss

In her performances, films, and sculptures, Jenna Bliss explores the ways in which drugs, both legal and illegal, are internalized to affect one’s way of “being here” (or “there”). She further examines what society considers a drug, and how state law, foreign policy, and entities like the Central Intelligence Agency influence the definition and availability of drugs. Across mediums, Bliss’s work brings together diverse elements that trace the history of narcotics, often highlighting spheres of social engagement to be exposed, disrupted, and reassembled.

Jenna Bliss (b. 1984, Yonkers, New York) lives in New York. Her videos and performances have been shown at CAGE, New York; Embassy Gallery, Edinburgh, United Kingdom; W139, Amsterdam, the Netherlands; South London Gallery, London, United Kingdom; and Midway Contemporary Art Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota. In 2016 her work will be exhibited and screened at the Institute of Contemporary Arts, London; Contemporary Art Centre, Vilnius, Lithuania; and Raven Row, London. In 2016-2017 she will be a participant in the Whitney Independent Study Studio Program.