J. J. McCracken (born 1972 in Mifflin, PA) is an American artist who lives and works in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

McCracken creates "sculptures, performances, and immersive installations focused on free speech, social justice and resource equity."

Education

McCracken received a B.A. in

Anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, society, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including archaic humans. Social anthropology studies patterns of behav ...

from

The College of William and Mary ''The'' is a grammatical Article (grammar), article in English language, English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the ...

in 1995, and an M.F.A. in Studio Art from

The George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a private federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by the United States Congress and is the first ...

in 2005. Subsequently, she attended the

Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture The Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture is an artists residency located in Madison, Maine, just outside of Skowhegan. Every year, the program accepts online applications from emerging artists from November through January, and selects 65 ...

Artwork

McCracken has been called "among the smartest artists in Washington" by the ''

Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

''. Her work, installations and performances has been exhibited and performed in museums, galleries and universities. In 2018, she was one of 10 artists selected for the "Identify" series of performance/lectures at the

National Portrait Gallery National Portrait Gallery may refer to: * National Portrait Gallery (Australia), in Canberra * National Portrait Gallery (Sweden), in Mariefred *National Portrait Gallery (United States), in Washington, D.C. *National Portrait Gallery, London ...

's "Identify" series.

Exhibitions

*2005 - Solo MFA thesis exhibition -re-performed as part of the Academy 2005, exhibition at

Conner Contemporary Art Connersmith is an art gallery in Washington, DC, owned and founded by Leigh Conner and Jamie Smith. History CONNERSMITH, (originally Conner Contemporary Art), was founded in 1999. The gallery, initially located in Dupont Circle, moved to the A ...

, Washington, DC *2005 - Dissolve, The Dimock Gallery—The George Washington University; Washington, DC *2007 - ''Artifacts for a New Millennium'', Meat Market Gallery; Washington, DC *2007 - ''A sketch for larger work'', Performed at the entrance to KeyArena in Center City STASIS, Meat Market Gallery; Washington, DC *2007 - ''The Wait (Counting)'',

KeyArena Climate Pledge Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is located north of downtown Seattle in the entertainment complex known as the Seattle Center, the site of the 1962 World's Fair, for which it wa ...

, Seattle, Washington *2008 - ''Living Sculpture'', Project 4 Gallery, Washington, DC *2010 - San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts, San Angelo, Texas *2010 - The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania *2010 - ''Earth To Table'', The Kathryn E. Narrow Educational Resource Center, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania *2011 - ''Thirst, and the Martyr'', (e)merge Art Fair, Capitol Skyline Hotel, Washington, DC *2011 - (e)merge art fair, Washington, DC *2011 - ''Climate, Control'', Civilian Art Projects, Washington, DC *2012 - ''Renting the Rain'', Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts,

Newcastle, Maine Newcastle is a town in Lincoln County, Maine, United States. The population was 1,848 at the 2020 census. The village of Newcastle is located in the eastern part of the town, on the Damariscotta River. Together with the village of Damariscot ...

*2012 - ''The archaeologist (the steward), and wonder and study'',

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

, Freer & Sackler Galleries, Washington, DC *2012 - ''The Huntress'', (e)merge Art Fair, Capitol Skyline Hotel, Washington, DC *2013 - ''Siamo Quel Che Mangiamo? Sostenibilita` e arte (Are We What We Eat?)'',

Accademia di Brera The Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera (), also known as the or Brera Academy, is a state-run tertiary public academy of fine arts in Milan, Italy. It shares its history, and its main building, with the Pinacoteca di Brera, Milan's main public mu ...

, Milan, Italy *2013 - ''Green Acres'', The American University Museum at Katzen Art Center, Washington, DC *2013 - ''The Unexpected'', Max L. Jackson Gallery at Queens University, Charlotte, North Carolina *2013 - ''Queer Objectivity'', Stamp Gallery,

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the Univ ...

, College Park, Maryland *2013 - ''A Recursive Lens'', Hillyer/International Arts & Artists, Washington, DC *2014 - ''Husk'', Arlington Arts Center, Arlington, VA *2014 - ''Inciteful Clay'',

Foosaner Art Museum The Foosaner Art Museum, formerly the Brevard Art Museum, was located along the Indian River in the Eau Gallie Arts District, 1463 Highland Avenue, Melbourne, Florida. Since opening in 1978 the Foosaner Art Museum amassed over 5,000 objects, ...

at the

Florida Institute of Technology Florida Institute of Technology (Florida Tech or FIT) is a private research university in Melbourne, Florida. The university comprises four academic colleges: Engineering & Science, Aeronautics, Psychology & Liberal Arts, and Business. Approxim ...

Melbourne, Florida Melbourne ( ) is a city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. It is located southeast of Orlando, Florida, Orlando along Florida's Space Coast, named because of the region's proximity to Cape Canaveral and the Kennedy Space Center. The city ...

*2014 - ''40 Years of Community Art'', Arlington Arts Center, Arlington, VA *2016 - ''The Mouth of the Scold'' (2016), was commissioned by the

for the "IDENTIFY: Performance Art as Portraiture" series. Following the performance, McCracken's sculpture, ''The Dunlevy Medallion'', was exhibited in the Gallery's Great Hall. *2017 - ''Waiting for Godot'', Gonzaga University - set features an art installation created by J.J. McCracken and Mat Rude, an assistant professor in Gonzaga’s art department.

References

External links

Artist's Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:McCracken, J. J. Artists from Pennsylvania Artists from Washington, D.C. American performance artists 21st-century American sculptors American ceramists American political artists 21st-century American women artists 20th-century American women artists George Washington University alumni College of William & Mary alumni Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture alumni 1972 births Living people Sculptors from Pennsylvania