SPEAKER: Dr Jessica Olivieri
Dr Jessica Olivieri (she/her/they) works on Druag and lives on Bidigal land.
Jessica grew up on her Italian Pop’s spaghetti bolognaise and conversations with IRA members on her maternal side. Her experience of growing up in an intercultural environment, as well as ten years of house-bound chronic illness and developing new ways to learn for her dyslexic brain, have informed her commitment to intersectional access to the arts.
Jessica’s family moved around the country, landing in Western Sydney as a teen, just in time for her to undertake a BA at Western Sydney University’s art school. After ten years as an artist and curator showing at major institutions like GOMA, Performance Space and MCA she undertook a PhD at Sydney uni. This PhD focused on the intersections of visual art, performance, dance and theatre within a community setting and how to do it better.