Kade L. Twist

Kade L. Twist is an Associate Professor and Curriculum Area Head of Art+Social Practice in the MFA Fine Arts Department at Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles. As an interdisciplinary artist and co-founder of the Indigenous collective Postcommodity, his work examines tensions between market-driven systems, consumerism, and American Indian cultural self-determination through video, sound, and installation environments.

Education

• M.F.A., Intermedia, Herberger Institute School of Art, Arizona State University (2012)
• B.A., Native American Studies with emphasis in tribal policy, University of Oklahoma (2003)
• American Indian Policy Seminar, American University (1999)

Research Focus

Twist's practice interrogates colonial market structures through Indigenous perspectives, specializing in:

• Intermedia installations exploring consumerism's impact on cultural sovereignty
• Decolonial critiques of economic systems through audiovisual environments
• Collaborative land art addressing border politics and tribal self-determination

His work with Postcommodity creates transnational dialogues about Indigenous space and resistance.

Publication Trends

Twist's scholarly output includes poetry collections, exhibition catalogs, and critical anthologies predominantly focused on Native American identity in contemporary contexts. Recurring themes examine urban Indigenous experiences, cultural equity, and critiques of commodification through both literary and visual forms spanning 1999-2014.

Awards and Honors

• Individual: US Artist Klein Fellowship (2015), Native Writers Circle First Book Award, Sequoyah Scholarship
• With Postcommodity: Creative Capital Grant (2012), Whitney Biennial participation (2017), Fine Prize at Carnegie International (2018), Joan Mitchell Foundation Grant

Collective Practice

As Postcommodity co-founder, Twist has developed large-scale installations like the U.S./Mexico border project Repellent Fence, exhibited at documenta14, Whitney Biennial, and 18th Biennale of Sydney. The collective has received support from Ford Foundation, Hewlett Foundation, and Harpo Foundation.