College of Visual and Performing Arts Dean bruce d. mcclung has announced the appointment of Leilei Xia as Assistant Professor of New Media & Design.
Born in Guangzhou, China, Leilei Xia is a multimedia artist who works in tactile art, experimental animation, video art, and participatory workshops and collective works. As the founder of the tactile art collective Tactileye and one of the editors of the independent science zine Icosa Magazine, Leilei often uses the format of role-playing and storytelling to explore the theme of body, tactility, and accessibility. She is interested in combining the process and result of creating art, treating art not only as a noun but also as a verb.
Xia’s tactile workshops have been hosted at the UCCA Center for Contemporary Art, Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts, A4 International Artist Residency, Transcultural Exchange in Boston, Accent Sister in New York, and the Institution of Contemporary Art at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). Her films and animation have been awarded or selected for such festivals as the Ann Arbor Film Festival, StopTrik Animation Festival, Berlin Female Filmmaker Festival, and Paris International Animation Festival. Her works have been exhibited in New York, Greensboro, Richmond, Guangzhou, and in other cities. She was also one of the speakers at TEDxVCU 2023.
Xia holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) from Rhode Island School of Design and a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) from Virginia Commonwealth University.
Please join us in welcoming Leilei Xia to the CVPA family!
