Freya Olafson

• Masters of Fine Art in New Media / Transart Institute / Donau Universität / Austria 
• University of Manitoba / School of Art 
• Bachelor of Arts Honors / University of Winnipeg

Freya Björg Olafson is an intermedia artist who works with video, audio, animation, motion capture, XR, painting, and performance. Their praxis engages with identity and the body, as informed by technology and the Internet. Olafson’s work has been presented and exhibited internationally at venues such as the Bauhaus Archiv (Berlin), SECCA - SouthEastern Center for Contemporary Art (North Carolina), Ochoymedio (Ecuador), The National Arts Center / Canada Dance Festival (Ottawa), and LUDWIG Museum (Budapest). Her video work has been screened in festivals and galleries internationally, and is distributed by Video Pool Media Arts Centre. Olafson has benefitted from residencies, most notably through EMPAC - Experimental Media & Performing Arts Center (New York), Oboro (Montreal), and Counterpulse (San Francisco). The recipient of numerous grants and awards, their honours include the ‘Buddies in Bad Times Vanguard Award for Risk and Innovation’ at Toronto’s SummerWorks festival, the ‘Making A Mark Award’ from the Winnipeg Arts Council, and most recently the ‘Sobey Art Award’ longlist in 2020; additional nominations include the National Media Arts Prize (2015) and the Manitoba Arts Council ‘Award of Distinction’(2019). Olafson joined the Department of Dance at York University as an Assistant Professor in July 2017, and subsequently joined the University of Manitoba School of Art in 2021.  Olafson holds an MFA in New Media from the Transart Institute / Donau Universität (Austria).

• 2021  The Lumen Prize for Art and Technology longlisted for the ‘B.C.S Immersive Environments category’ 
• 2020 Sobey Art Award – Longlist Awardee - nominated by Video Pool Media Arts Center 
• 2020 UK-CANADA IMMERSIVE EXCHANGE Creative Lead for program supported by an international partnership between StoryFutures Academy, the National Centre for Immersive Storytelling (run by the National Film and Television School and Royal Holloway, University of London) and Arts Council England in the UK, and the Canada Media Fund, Canadian Film Centre and the Canada Council for the Arts - from November 2020 and February 2021
• 2020 York University selected as a ‘2020 York Research Leader’ 
• 2020 Manitoba Arts Council ‘Award of Distinction’  candidate - nominated by Dave Barber
• 2020 AMPD - Research Award nominated by the Department of Dance in 2018, 2019, 2020
• 2018 Winnipeg Arts Council ‘Making A Mark Award’ recipient, nominated by Video Pool Media Arts Centre 
• 2018 Sobey Art Award – candidate nominated by MAWA - Mentoring Artists for Women’s Art
• 2017 Counter Pulse ‘Combustible - Dance / Tech Artist in Residence Commissioning Program recipient
• 2015 Winnipeg Arts Council  ‘Making a Mark Award’ nominated by Dave Barber
• 2014 National Media Art Prize / IMAA Independent Media Arts Alliance nominated by Video Pool Media Arts Center - Winnipeg
• 2010 Buddies in Bad Times Vanguard Award for Risk and Innovation Summerworks Theatre Festival, Toronto

• 2020 - ongoing   FADO Performance Art Centre Board member - Toronto
• 2020 - ongoing  Sensorium: Centre for Digital Arts & Technology - SSHRC / Partnership Engage Grant ‘COVID19 - a Unique Opportunity for Cultural Individuation through Technologically Augmented Caribbean Dance workshops’ Led by Joel Ong - Co-applicant
• 2020 - ongoing  Hemispheric Encounters: Developing Transborder Research-Creation Practices Partnership Grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada - Principal Investigator Laura Levin - Research Collaborator  
• 2005 - ongoing Video Pool Media Arts Center (Board Member since 2012, Artist member since 2005) Winnipeg
• 2006 - ongoing núna (now) Festival (President of the Board since 2010 / member of the curatorial committee) Fostering cultural engagement between Canada & Iceland through multidisciplinary contemporary art programming
• Sensorium: Centre for Digital Arts & Technology at York University - Executive Committee Member (2019 - 2021) / Associate Faculty (2018)
• 2013 – 2019 Canadian Consortium On Performance & Politics in the Americas  / Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Principal Investigator Dr. Peter Kulchyski at the University of Manitoba - Research Collaborator