Biography

Kristen Dorsey is a doctoral student in the Department of Gender Studies at UCLA. She is a citizen of the Chickasaw Nation and was born and raised on Tongva land (Los Angeles). She earned a B.F.A from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, and a B.A. in American Studies from Tufts University with a focus in Native American studies. Dorsey, through jewelry design and sculpture, joined many other female and non-binary Indigenous artists seeking to disrupt the settler-colonial gaze, assert Indigenous sovereignty, and amplify Indigenous-led movements against extractive industries. Her research examines Indigenous-centered curation as a vehicle for dismantling settler narratives in museums and art markets. She served as a founding board member of Visual Voices: Contemporary Chickasaw Art. She also co-curated the exhibit “Matriarchs” with Jaclyn Roessel (Diné) for the El Segundo Museum of Art. Dorsey served on the El Segundo Arts and Culture Committee where she worked with her committee to install a mural by Nanibah Chacon (Diné/Chicana) in conversation with Mercedes Dorame (Tongva). Dorsey hopes to continue her work and scholarship to amplify the powerful voices of the Native art community.