Dalia Zabelina

Dalia Zabelina
Name	Dalia Zabelina
Occupation	Sculpture, Installation art, Curatorship

Dalia Zabelina is a sculptor, installation artist, and curator known for interdisciplinary projects that intersect material craft, site-specific practice, and cultural heritage. Her work has engaged institutions, festivals, and museums across Europe and North America, linking sculptural practice with community archives, urban interventions, and collaborative pedagogy. Zabelina's projects often involve historical research, adaptive reuse of objects, and partnerships with artists, conservators, and cultural organizations.

Early life and education

Born in a European context, Zabelina trained in studio practice and art history before pursuing advanced studies that combined fine arts with curatorial studies. She studied at institutions that include national academies and polytechnic universities, engaging tutors and visiting artists associated with Royal College of Art, École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts, University of the Arts London, Columbia University, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology programs. Her education involved apprenticeships and residencies that connected her to workshops and studios linked to Tate Modern, Museum of Modern Art, Victoria and Albert Museum, and regional contemporary art centers. During formative years she participated in exchanges and fellowships tied to cultural agencies such as British Council, Institut français, Goethe-Institut, Fulbright Program, and Erasmus Programme.

Career and achievements

Zabelina's career spans studio practice, curatorial projects, and collaborative commissions for public institutions. She has undertaken site-specific commissions for municipal galleries, biennales, and cultural foundations connected to Serpentine Galleries, Stedelijk Museum, Centre Pompidou, Kunsthalle Wien, Neue Galerie, and city art programs in capitals like London, Paris, Berlin, and Amsterdam. Her collaborative projects have involved artist-run spaces, university galleries such as Slade School of Fine Art, Royal Academy of Arts, Goldsmiths, and community arts platforms supported by organizations including Arts Council England and Canada Council for the Arts. Zabelina has also curated programs and symposia that aligned with museum research departments like National Gallery, Royal Academy, and university museums such as Smithsonian Institution affiliates and Yale University Art Gallery.

Her practice frequently intersects with conservation specialists, archivists, and historians at institutions like The National Archives, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin, and national heritage agencies. Zabelina has collaborated with architects and urbanists from offices associated with competitions run by Royal Institute of British Architects and cultural development projects funded by European Cultural Foundation.

Research and publications

Zabelina's research addresses material histories, object biographies, and the socio-cultural trajectories of sculptural media. She has published essays and catalogue texts in volumes produced by museums and academic presses, contributing to edited collections and journals connected with Artforum, October (journal), Third Text, Journal of Material Culture, and university presses such as Oxford University Press and Routledge. Her writings examine intersections between craftsmanship and industrial production, drawing on case studies referencing collections at Victoria and Albert Museum, Rijksmuseum, British Museum, Hermitage Museum, and conservation reports from institutions like Getty Conservation Institute.

Zabelina has contributed to exhibition catalogues for major shows at venues such as Hayward Gallery, MoMA PS1, Serpentine Pavilion, and biennales including Venice Biennale, Documenta, and São Paulo Biennial. She has lectured and delivered papers at conferences hosted by College Art Association, International Council of Museums, Association of Art Historians, and university symposia at Courtauld Institute of Art, University of Oxford, and University of Cambridge.

Exhibitions and performances

Her solo and group exhibitions have appeared in contemporary art institutions, regional museums, and international festivals. Zabelina has presented installations and sculptural performances at venues such as Whitechapel Gallery, Hammer Museum, Fondation Cartier, Kunstverein Leipzig, and cultural programs at events including Frieze Art Fair, Art Basel, and Manifesta. Public performances and participatory works have been staged in collaboration with cultural agencies and municipal programs across cities like Prague, Brussels, Zurich, and Toronto.

She has participated in artist residency programs at prominent centers such as International Studio & Curatorial Program, Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, MacDowell Colony, and regional ateliers affiliated with national arts councils. Zabelina's installations frequently incorporate sound, found objects, and activated archives, engaging audiences in site-responsive experiences in both indoor and outdoor contexts including historic houses, docks, and former industrial sites linked to cultural regeneration projects.

Awards and recognition

Zabelina's contributions to contemporary art have been recognized with fellowships, grants, and awards from national and international arts organizations. She has received support and prizes associated with bodies like Arts Council England, Prince Claus Fund, European Cultural Foundation, Arts and Humanities Research Council, and philanthropic institutions tied to major museums. Her work has been shortlisted and awarded in competitions and prizes connected to Turner Prize-adjacent programs, regional sculpture awards, and residency fellowships administered by foundations such as British Council and Wellcome Trust.

Her projects have been acquired or documented by museum archives and public collections including municipal museum holdings, university libraries, and digital archives curated by institutions such as Tate Archive, Getty Research Institute, and national art repositories. Zabelina continues to engage in commissioned work, pedagogy, and research collaborations that bridge studio practice with institutional inquiry and public programming.

Category:Contemporary sculptors Category:Installation artists