This week we welcome Cat Del Buono, an artist/filmmaker and the daughter of Italian immigrants. Del Buono creates videos, video installations and public happenings that focus on social issues. She sometimes uses humor to break down complex topics such as victim blaming or gender inequality. Other times, showing the disturbing reality of issues like domestic violence can make a bigger impact. No matter the project, Del Buono’s intention is always to give people a voice and to influence change.
Del Buono earned a bachelor of arts degree from Boston College, a master’s degree in fine arts from School of Visual Arts, and attended the graduate film program at New York University. She is the recipient of a Fulbright Scholarship to Italy where she will be creating an installation that focuses on domestic violence survivors in Naples and Rome. Other awards include the Brooklyn Arts Fund, Visiting Artist at American Academy in Rome, Bronx Museum AIM Fellowship, School of Visual Arts Alumni Award and a NYFA Stipend. Her work has been featured in Jezebel, Miami Herald, Brooklyn Rail, Art Newspaper, Art Spiel, Huffington Post, Time and on PBS.
Del Buono’s works continue to show in the U.S. and abroad, including Bronx Museum, Bass Museum, Microscope Gallery, Shiva Gallery at John Jay College and MoCA Miami to name a few. She has written for publications and catalogs, taught cinema lighting, advised thesis students and started a nonprofit organization which provides free art classes to underprivileged children.
“I am an artist who uses video, installation and performance to address social issues and engage my community. I prefer creating works that are accessible to the public, allowing them to interact directly. My ongoing project “Voices” changes with each version I create. In each city I travel to, I partner with local domestic violence organizations to find survivors to film. I then create a local-specific video installation that is presented to the community along with a panel discussion. The work engages visitors by surrounding them with 20 small monitors, each with a survivor speaking of their experience with abuse. The immersive installation is overwhelming, accentuating the enormity of the issue of domestic violence. The purpose is to give a voice to the voiceless, to bring about awareness and to help encourage the necessary changes to stop this epidemic of violence.”
See more of Del Buono’s work on her website and Instagram page
