Mariana Noreña Gutiérrez
- Interdisciplinary 2026
Mariana Noreña is a multidisciplinary artist from Bogotá, Colombia, currently based in Chicago, Illinois.
She holds bachelor’s degrees in Design and Fine Arts from Universidad de los Andes and an MFA in Fiber and Material Studies from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Her research-driven, site-responsive practice explores how humans relate to place through ecology, history, mythology, and conversation. Working primarily with earth matter and locally sourced materials, she creates sculptural installations that investigate the material memory of landscapes and reveal intimate and collective stories of time, transformation, and our interconnected relationship with the environment.
Recent solo exhibitions include Territorio Ceniza at Murmuration (Chicago), Instructions for a Walk at Garage 04 (Karlsruhe, Germany), and Reflections of Place at UNAM Chicago. Noreña is the recipient of the 2025 Re/Match Artist Award and the International Sculpture Center Innovator Award, was named a 2026 Newcity Breakout Artist, and has been awarded fellowships at The Studios at MASS MoCA (2026) and the Vermont Studio Center (2023).
Recent solo exhibitions include Territorio Ceniza at Murmuration (Chicago), Instructions for a Walk at Garage 04 (Karlsruhe, Germany), and Reflections of Place at UNAM Chicago. Noreña is the recipient of the 2025 Re/Match Artist Award and the International Sculpture Center Innovator Award, was named a 2026 Newcity Breakout Artist, and has been awarded fellowships at The Studios at MASS MoCA (2026) and the Vermont Studio Center (2023).