Lucy Orta's work examines the social bo,ds wothin communities and the relationships between individuals and their environments. In the early 1990s Orta began a series of works that combined architecture, fashion and social activism. These works took the form of prototype clothing and portable shelters for emergency situations. Orta's work has since grown to incorporate interdisciplinary workshops, contemporary dance and other actions that explore notions of identity, shared space and networking. These projects include collaborations with such marginalized groups as the unemployed, the homeless and immigrants. Orta has staged solo exhibitions and performances at the Cartier Foundation for Contemporary Art, Paris (1996), the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney (1998), and the Wiener Secession, Vienna (1999). She has exhibited in numerous group exhibitions, including the Venice Biennale (1995), the Johannesburg Biennale (1997) and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Tokyo (1998). In addition Orta frequently works outside the usual art world of gallery and Museum exhibitions. Orta is currently the first Rootstein Hopkins Chair of Fashion at the London College of Fashion, part of The London Institute, and heads the new master programme'Man and Humanity' at the Design Academy in Eindhoven.
