MARISA TORNELLO
they/she
Described in the New York Times as delivering "crystalline rendition(s)", Marisa Tornello is a composer, vocalist, performance artist, and maker centering their practice around themes of mental health, and creating works that elevate voices in a stigmatized society. Marisa's practice also extends into mobile interface video art, poetry, theater, movement, and conceptual art.
Recent Accolades include:
2023 Howard Gilman Foundation Performing Artists Residency Cohort
2023 DCA Premier Grant for graphic score When I
2022 Artist Commission at Roulette Intermedium through the Jerome Foundation
Marisa has performed and collaborated with Yoshiko Chuma and the School of Hard Knocks, Pioneers Go East Collective, Metropolis Ensemble, Oye Group, ECHOEnsemble, Infrasound, and La MaMa ETC. Their works have been shown at Roulette Intermedium (2022 Commissioned Artist), the Tank (Ladyfest), Jack, La MaMa ETC, Snug Harbor Cultural Center, Vital Joint (Exponential Festival), Invisible Dog Arts Center (Nafas Festival), and Judson Church.
Their poetry and graphic scores have been published with Peach Magazine.
Ensemble Work
Marisa has been a member of the New York Choral Society and Canticum Novum Singers, and has performed on the stages of Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Madison Square Garden, the Prudential Center, and Palau de la Musica. She has performed in the choruses of Peter Yarrow, Andrea Bocelli, Renee Fleming, Anna Netrebko, and the Met Orchestra. Marisa is an alumna of the Trinity/La MaMa Program, and made her New York debut performing the ensemble piece Searching for Home at La MaMa in 2012. They have been an active model in the NYC bodypainting community since 2015, and had the opportunity to model in the tenth episode of Project Runway Season 13 in 2014.
Artist Statement
Whether it's fruit smashed onto cardstock, overlayed distortion of mobile user interface art, or live looping extended vocal technique, creating unique worlds that communicate different themes of the human psyche is the core of my work. I'm fascinated by living objects used as graphic score, the art and observation of decay, the collaboration of performance and video art, and ways we can musically, poetically, and visually communicate mental health states. I'm always searching for new mediums to explore that have become commonplace, like basic user design on smartphones or the way a leaf decays in the fall.