Leah Gilliam
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
1967 (age 57–58)
New York University (MFA)
L. Franklin Gilliam | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Leah Catherine Gilliam 1967 (age 57–58) Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Education | Brown University (BA) New York University (MFA) |
| Known for | Participating in first digital media exhibition at Whitney Museum of Art, NY |
| Notable work | Apeshit v3, Lesberation, Sapphire and the Slave Girl |
| Parents |
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| Relatives | Melissa L. Gilliam (sister) |
L. Franklin Gilliam (born 1967) is an American filmmaker and media artist who deals with issues of race, gender, and sexual orientation in their work.[1] Gilliam was the director of projects and community catalyst at gamelab's Institute of Play[2] and a visiting faculty member at the Vermont College of Fine Arts.[3] They are currently vice president of strategy and innovation at Girls Who Code.[4]
Gilliam was born in 1967 in Washington, D.C. The child of Sam Gilliam, an abstract painter, and Dorothy Butler Gilliam, the first black woman reporter for The Washington Post, they grew up with parents who were instrumental in exposing them to cultural production early on in life.[5][6] They attended Brown University, where they studied Modern Culture and Media. Gilliam graduated with their Bachelor of Arts in 1989. They received their Master of Fine Arts in 1992 from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee studying Film and Twentieth Century Studies.[7] They also studied at NYU from 2006 to 2008.[8] Since receiving their master's degree in professional studies in interactive communication from NYU, Gilliam has had a number of academic and design lab appointments.
Teaching positions
Gilliam was already lecturing in the Film Department of the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee from 1991 to 1992, the year that preceded the completion of their Master of Fine Arts. In 1993, Gilliam took a position as the visiting artist in video at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. They became an adjunct professor for video there in 1995. Remaining there only a year, Gilliam left to become an assistant professor in the Film and Electronics department at Bard College.[7] In 2002, they received a position as an associate professor and stayed on at Bard College until September 2007. During their time at Bard College, they served as faculty for the Bard M.F.A. Program and director of the Integrated Arts Program, and as chair of Division of the Arts.[8] Despite their absence from Bard's faculty roster, Gilliam still appears on the college's main site in a rotating photo roster of select faculty and students.[9]
