Damien & The Love Guru

In Bolivian-born American artist Agatha Wara’s practice, phantasms of identity are excavated as the self is constructed and dissolved, subject to fictionalization and narrativization, (re)presented on- and off-stage. Wara’s work combines textual endeavors, video, sculpture, performance, and occasional parties. Within these realms, real-life desires meet disappointments and become vehicles that the artist uses to colonize feelings of belonging and alienation. With a distinct emotional component, the work displays a type of angst, perhaps of the American teenage girl variety—emotionally stunted, and “unintelligent”—serving as a lens through which Wara processes her own native roots. South American llamas appear as avatars, fashion and glamour meets rural trash, while tradition and myth is mashed up with contemporary commerce.

Education

• MFA, Oslo National Academy of the Arts (KHiO), Oslo, 2018
• MA, Center for Curatorial Studies, Bard College Annandale-on-Hudson, NY, 2012

Upcoming

• Juanita (car calendar), Norsk Billedhoggerforening, Oslo (2025)
• E-TOPS #5, with Yngve Holen (2025)
• Solo show, Mikro Residency curated by Anna Frost, Los Angeles (2025)

Solo & duo exhibitions

• Texokla Athens Alexandria Vienna London unreal, Borgenheim Rosenhoff, Oslo, 2024
• That awful hole, Affiliate (WIELS), Brussels, 2024
• The Voyage of Puny Buny, Damien & The Love Guru, Brussels, 2024
• Juanita, Norsk Billedhoggerforening and Oslo kulturetaten, Oslo, 2022
• FACE BONER, invited by Arild Tveito, Centralbanken, Oslo, 2021
• The Book, Studio17, Stavanger, 2021
• Llorona de Panama, Kunsthall Oslo, 2020
• The Village Incredibles, invited by Ignas Krunglevičius, Podium, Oslo, 2019
• PROFILES, invited by Kristian Skylstad, NoPlace, Oslo, 2018
• Swamp of Sagittarius, invited by Naomi Fisher, Art Basel Miami, Miami, 2015
• Luxury Face, with Ida Eritsland and Geir Haraldseth, Gucci Vuitton Gallery, 2014

Selected group exhibitions

• Poésie contre fin du monde - La Médiathèque Autonome, curated by Devrim Bayar and Ethan Assouline, Mécènes du Sud, Montpellier, 2024–2025
• STAKING YOUR LIFE ON A PRANK, Galerie Yeche Lange, New York, 2024
• An Account of the Luck and Misfortune of _____, curated by PROVENCE Magazine, Établissement d’en face, Brussels, 2024
• Lounge Corp, Reykjavík Art Museum, Reykjavík, Iceland, 2023
• Jeg kaller det kunst, curated by Geir Haraldseth and Randi Godø, at National Museum of Art in Norway, Oslo, 2022
• You Lucky Pig, Oslo Kunstforenings Adventskalender 2022, Oslo, 2022
• It’s Just A Phase, curated by Rhea Dall and Ingar Dragset, K-U-K, Trondheim, 2021
• Winter Rose, curated by Mikael Brkic, Iz Island, Croatia, 2021
• Forever Mall, curated by Anna Frost, Shoot the Lobster gallery, Los Angeles, 2021
• JANUARY 2020 – JUNE 2021, curated by Paolo Baggi, Établissement d’en face, Brussels, 2021
• The Bingo Season, curated by Jurgen Ots and Paolo Baggi, Place jeu de Balle, Brussels, 2021
• Leap for life!, invited by Christoffer Danielsson, Spring för livet, Athens, 2020
• Soppen, curated by Trollkrem, Ekeberg Park, Oslo, 2016

Art fairs

• Petting Zoo, with Mathias Toubro, Basel Social Club, 2024
• The Hungry Woman, curated by Helga Just Christoffersen, CHART Art Fair, Copenhagen, 2019
• Agatha magazine, Nada Art Fair, NYC, 2018
  

Bars

• Juanita, with Sophie Keij, curated by Devrim Bayar, Geneva Sculpture Garden Bienniale, Geneva, 2022
• +32 495 48 42 55, with Sophie Keij, Wiels Project Room, Brussels, 2021
• Club Liar, UKS Minibar, Oslo, 2017

Writing

• On dogs—, for Provence Magazine, Zurich, 2024; (VIEW PDF)
• The Depreciation of the Bolivian Peso, for It’s Just A Phase exhibition, K-U-K, Trondheim, 2021; (VIEW PDF)
• Blushing Game, for The Bingo Season, Place jeu de Balle, Brussels, 2021
• Blushing Game, for the publication ABHIVYAKTI, Ed. by Melanie Kitti and Priya Bains, Kunstnernes Hus, Oslo, 2021; (VIEW PDF)
• To lift, commissioned by Marthe Elise Stramrud for the exhibition Keramisk Faktaopplysning, Sørlandets Kunstmuseum, Kristiansand 2021
• Aktuelle Aktualiteten, column edited by Jonas Ekeberg, Kunstrkritikk.no, 2020
• A Cat’s Tail on Urd J. Pedersen, commissioned text for Norsk kunstårbok 2020, edited by Arve Rød and Ketil Nergaard, 2020
• Monster that I am., profile of artist Zdenka Rusova, Kunstkritikk.no, 2019
• Germans Screw Better, a conversation with Yngve Holen for his show at Kunstnernes Hus, Kunstkritikk.no, 2019
• Ending up, Ed. by Victoria Duffee and Andreas Breivik, Vi Ser På Kunst issue, Oslo, 2018
• Beasts Knows Bests, Pure Fyction Artbook Fair, Staedelschule, Frankfurt, 2017
• reeesssiay, based on “Jeg ser” by Sigbjørn Obstfelder, with Tariq Hindic, Stavanger Konserthus, Stavanger, 2017
• Bambi is We, Soppen curated by Trollkrem, Ekeberg Park, Oslo, 2016
• I Am Become Feel Feeler of Feels, with Elise By Olsen, Norwegian Sculpture Biennial, Vigeland Museum, Oslo, 2016
• Hydrothermal Life-the Struggle is Real, with Katja Novitskova, LIAF, Svolvaer, 2015
• Everything (Total Dress PLUS), invited by HAiK, Bergen Kunsthall, Bergen, 2014

Awards and grants

• 1-year artist stipend from Billedkunstnernes Vederlagsfond (BKV), 2024
• 2-year artist stipend from Arts Council Norway (Arbeidsstipend for yngre nyetablerte kunstnere) 2022-2023
• 1-year artist stipend from Billedkunstnernes Vederlagsfond (BKV), 2021
• Oslo Kommune internasjonal kunstnerutveksling, 2021
• SKS Midlertidig stipend - COVID 19, 2020
• NKF Kunstfaglige publikasjoner og manusutvikling (for No More Ouchies), 2020
• NKF Ekstraordinær utlysning i forbindelse med koronakrisen (for “The Book”), 2020
• 1-year stipend from Billedkunstnernes Vederlagsfond (BKV), 2019
• Office for Contemporary Art Norway Travel Grant (Bolivia, Sorojchi Tambo), 2018
• FKDS Atelierstipend (1 year atelier) at Kunstnernes Hus, 2018
• Diversestipend for Nyutdannede Kunstnere, 2018
• Kunstnerassistentordningen, with artist Marthe Ramm Fortun, 2018
• Danish Arts Council Curatorial Research Grant, 2015
• Office for Contemporary Art Norway Travel Grant (NYC, Disown), 2014
• Kunstnarstipend Diversestipend, 2014

Residencies

• OCA-WIELS Residency Programme, Brussels, 2021
• Atelierhuset i Arcueil, Paris, 2018
• Sorojchi Tambo (Fundacion Cinenomada Para Las Artes) in La Paz, Bolivia, 2018
• Dark Ecology Journey, exploring the Barents Region, Norway/Russia, 2014
• Emancipation as Navigation, HKW, Berlin, 2014
• But Does It Float, Summer School at Barbershop, Lisbon, Portugal, 2014
• SOMA Summer Curatorial Residency, Mexico City, Mexico, 2011

Related activities

• Guest teaching, Pastime for BFA Forum, The Royal Danish Art Academy, Copenhagen, 2023
• Panel discussion, Eternally Young Artists’ Society: Let’s Party, UKS/Oslo Kunstforening, Oslo, 2022
• Guest teaching, The Public, MA design class, with Charlotte Bik Bandlien, KHiO, Oslo, 2022
• Workshop, Sidesprang, for Jeg kaller det kunst, Nasjonalmuseet, Oslo, 2021
• Workshop, “Kunst adventure with Victoria Duffee & Agatha Wara”, for Black Box Theatre, Oslo, 2021
• Artist talk, Kunstskolen i Stavanger, Stavanger, 2021
• Artist talk, Against argument, BA design class, invited by Charlotte Bik Bandlien, KHiO, Oslo, 2018
• Workshop, BA fashion class, invited by Peter Løchstøer, KHiO, Oslo, 2018
• Curating, MA/BA Design Graduation show, with Ida Eritsland, KHiO, Oslo, 2015
• Workshop series, Going Public, MFA 2 class, KHiO, 2015-2016
• Panel discussion, invited by the MFA 2 class, Bergen Art Academy, Bergen, 2015
• Artist talk, District 9 & Philosophical Realism, Oslo Fotokunstskole, Oslo, 2014
• Curating, MFA 2 graduation show, Tromsø Art Academy, Trømso, 2015
• Curating, DISOWN, with Dis, Red Bull Studios, NYC, 2013
• Curating, Shell-Reflexive, invited by Naomi Fisher, Bas Fisher Invitational, Miami, 2011

• Agatha Wara “The Voyage of Puny Buny” at Damien and the Love Guru Brussels, 11.03.2024, Mousse Magazine
• Agatha Wara “The Voyage of Puny Buny” at Damien and the Love Guru Brussels, March 2024, Contemporary Art Library
• Kunstinstallasjon som poserer som butikk, eller motsatt?, by Ida Eritsland, tidensand.no, 2022 (interview)Curriculum Vitae Agatha Wara
• Fest er fortsatt viktig, by Tiril Flom, Kunstkritikk.no, 2022
• Oslo kommune ga bot til eget kunstverk: Dette synes jeg var morsomt, by Bente Rognan Gravklev and Aslak Borgersrud, Dagsavisen, 2022
• Den skrivende historien om bilen Juanita, Hedda Grevle Ottesen, Natt&Dag, 2022
• Ukeslutt (30.04.2022), by Line Forsmo, Radio NRK, 2022
• Sletter Norges mest omtalte parkeringsbot, by Toril Frislid Gustafson, Peter-Andre Hegg, Subjekt.no, 2022
• En luksusbil og et klokkespill for duer. Nye spektakulære kunstverk plassert i Øvre Slottsgate som en del av Bilfritt byliv, Anders Høilund, Vartoslo.no, 2022
• 8 spennende utstillinger å sjekke ut – over hele landet, Melk og Honning, 2021
• Breaking the Fast, Stian Gabrielsen, Kunstkritikk, 2021
• Se bildene fra åpningshelgen ved K.U.K., www.adressa.no, Annemona Grann, 2021
• Photos from exhibition Forever Mall, www.ofluxo.net, 2021
• Ask Addoley + Anna Podcast (Nasjonalmuseet podcast), 2020
• Saint Agatha, by Arild Tveito, Norsk kunstårbok, 2020
• Brandet til døde, Nicholas Norton, Kunstkritikk, 2019
• Det handler om å føle seg fabulous, Ida Eritsland, D2 (Dagens Næringsliv), 2017
• Kritikken innenfra, Emil Flatø, Morgenbladet, 2017
• Agatha Waras kunsttidsskrift inneholder alt fra poesi til kantinemat, Live Drønen, Subjekt, 2017
• Deep in the Norwegian woods at a fantasyfestival, Eugenia Lapteva, Dazed Digital, 2016
• Norwegian Wood, Wendy Vogel, Frieze, 2016
• Swamp of Sagittarius at Art Basel uses astrologers to predict your future, Liz Tracy, Miami New Times, 2015
• Buy More or Sell Your Art? The Answer’s in the Stars, Emerson Rosenthal, VICE, 2015
• Check out your Artist-Designed Miami Fair Week Horoscope, Kevin Mcgarry, Artnet News, 2015
• Festivalen som fant seg selv, Jonas Ekeberg, Kunstkritikk.no, 2015
• Highlights, Gean Moreno, Kaleidoscope, 2015
• Uncovering Unique Histories: Miami’s Corner of Contemporary Art, Courtney Malick, The Miami Rail, 2015
• Basel Beat: Luxury Face, Monica Uszerowicz, V Magazine, 2015
• On Art and Luxury, Mari Rustan, Kunstforum, 2015
• Luxury Face at Guccivuitton, Rob Goyanes, Temporary Art Review, 2015
• Interview in Hyperstition film by Christopher Roth, HKW, Berlin, 2014
• Unreadymades, Torunn Liven, Kunstritikk.no, 2014
• Shopkeepers of the World Unite, Christopher Glazek, Artforum, 2013
• Disown Not for Everyone, Exhibitions on the Lookout, Art in America, 2013
• Art Week NYC, Kisha Baltista, Frank, 2013
• Bizarre Products Dreamed up by the Heirs of Marcel Duchamp, Kyle Vanhemert, Wired, 2013
• High Art Meets Fast Fashion, Ian Monroe, V Magazine, 2013
• Disown blows away the boundaries between art and commerce, Gabby Bess, Paper Mag, 2013
• Retail Store or Art Exhibition?, Emily Manning, Opening Ceremony, 2013
• Art and Commerce Exhibition is a Welcome dis during Armory Week, Scott Indrisek, Blackbook, 2013
• Disown exhibition, Emma Dakimakura, Purple, New York, 2013
• Why I Hate Post Internet Art, Brian Droitcour, 2013
• Net Gains, Paul Teasdale, Frieze, 2013