Praba Pilar

Praba Pilar is an artist-scholar and Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Critical Studies Program at California College of the Arts (CCA). With a PhD in Performance Studies from UC Davis and a BA in Intermedia Arts from Mills College, she brings a rich interdisciplinary background to her teaching and creative practice. She has previously taught at UC Davis, the University of Winnipeg, and the Summer Institute of Performance Studies at Northwestern University.

• PhD in Performance Studies, UC Davis
• BA in Intermedia Arts, Mills College
• Post-Doctoral Fellowship in Digital Humanities, University of Winnipeg

Her research and artistic work critically engage with the 'Cult of the Techno-Logic,' focusing on artificial intelligence, bioart, decolonial media, and multispecies ethics. Pilar’s practice spans live performance, digital installations, participatory workshops, and critical writing. Central projects include Queercornu(c/t)opia, The Techno-Tamaladas, and Larval Rock Stars, all of which challenge dominant technological narratives through feminist, queer, and Latinx perspectives.

The 15 most recent articles and exhibitions reflect a consistent focus on decolonizing technology, embodied resistance, and the ethical dimensions of AI and biotech. Her work integrates performance, critical theory, and community engagement to question the social, racial, and environmental impacts of technological systems. Recurring themes include posthumanism, digital colonialism, and the reimagining of technological futures through marginalized epistemologies.

Her awards highlight recognition across art, social practice, and humanities:

• 2025–2027 HUMAN Fellowship and Residency
• 2024 TTT Feral BioArt Residency
• 2022 Memes as Social Practice Residency
• 2021 Cultura Power Fellowship
• 2020 Community Rapid Response Award
• 2019 Local Impact Award (California Arts Council)
• City of Emeryville Community Grant
• Puffin Foundation Award
• Creative Work Fund Award
• Potrero Nuevo Fund Award
• Two Rockefeller Award nominations

Pilar is actively involved in collaborative and advisory roles, including Co-Director of the Bioarts Ethical Advisory Komission and Emeritus Board Member of Women Eco Artists Dialogue. She has secured grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, Headlands Center for the Arts, and MACLA, supporting community-based and experimental art projects. Her work is widely exhibited in museums, galleries, and digital platforms globally.

She leads workshops and participates in international symposia, including events at the Hemispheric Institute of Performance and Politics, College Art Association, and Society for Literature, Science, and the Arts. Her lab-like collaborative frameworks—such as Larval Rock Stars and Los Cybrids—function as interdisciplinary teams merging art, science, and activism to explore posthuman futures.