Edra Soto

Edra Soto was born in Puerto Rico in 1971. She received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Escuela de Artes Plasticas de Puerto Rico in 1994. After moving to Chicago, she earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 2000. She has received several awards, including the Efroymson Contemporary Arts Fellowship (2016){{Cite web|url=https://www.cicf.org/2016/11/17/efroymson-family-fund-awards-millionth-dollar-contemporary-visual-artists/|title=Efroymson Family Fund Awards Millionth Dollar to Contemporary Visual Artists|date=2016-11-17|website=Central Indiana Community Foundation|language=en-US|access-date=2019-02-23}} and the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) Individual Artists Award (2017). She has curated numerous exhibitions, including co-curating Present Standard at the Chicago Cultural Center in 2016.{{Cite web|url=https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/dca/supp_info/present_standard.html|title=City of Chicago: Present Standard|website=www.chicago.gov|access-date=2019-02-23}} She is a faculty member in the Contemporary Practices Department at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago.{{Cite web|url=http://www.saic.edu/profiles/faculty/edra-soto|title=esotof|website=School of the Art Institute of Chicago|language=en|access-date=2019-02-23}} Her work has been exhibited in solo and group shows both nationally and internationally.

In 2012, Soto and her husband Dan Sullivan founded The Franklin, an artist-run project space in the backyard of their home in Garfield Park, featuring installations and site-specific work by Chicago and national artists.{{Cite web|url=http://temporaryartreview.com/the-franklin/|title=The Franklin|date=2013-10-29|website=Temporary Art Review|language=en-US|access-date=2019-02-15}}{{Cite web|url=http://voyagechicago.com/interview/meet-edra-soto-franklin-east-garfield-park-humboldt-park/|title=Meet Edra Soto of The Franklin in East Garfield and Humboldt Park - Voyage Chicago {{!}} Chicago City Guide|date=27 February 2018 |language=en-US|access-date=2019-02-23}}

The Franklin Collection of over 200 artworks by local, national, and international artists is also at the Garfield Park location.{{Cite web|url=https://3arts.org/projects/franklin-collection/|title=The Franklin Collection|last=Soto|first=Edra|website=3Arts: 3AP – MAKE ART WORK|language=en|access-date=2019-02-24}}

Soto's ongoing site-specific GRAFT series, begun in 2013, incorporates the geometric designs of iron rejas screens popular throughout Puerto Rico.{{Cite web|url=https://hyperallergic.com/293611/grafting-puerto-rican-architecture-onto-the-lower-east-side/|title=Grafting Puerto Rican Architecture onto the Lower East Side|date=2016-04-27|website=Hyperallergic|language=en-US|access-date=2019-02-23}}{{Cite web|url=https://art.newcity.com/2013/04/02/review-edra-sototerrain/|title=Review: Edra Soto/Terrain|date=2013-04-02|website=Newcity Art|language=en-US|access-date=2019-02-23}} In 2014, Soto and Dan Sullivan were awarded a public art commission from the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) for the Blue Line Western Station.{{Cite web|url=https://www.transitchicago.com/cta-selects-your-new-blue-contractor-for-damen-western-and-california-station-renovations/|title=CTA Selects Your New Blue Contractor for Damen, Western and California station renovations|website=CTA|language=en|access-date=2019-02-23}} Their work will be a large-scale installation for the stationhouse exterior.{{Cite web|url=https://www.transitchicago.com/art/|title=Public Art on the CTA|website=CTA|language=en|access-date=2019-02-23}}

Edra Soto was an Artist-in-Residence at Institute of Contemporary Art San Diego, California, in 2023.{{Cite web |title=Edra Soto: Graft |url=https://icasandiego.org/art/edra-soto-graft/ |access-date=2024-08-27 |website=ICA |language=en-US}} In 2024, Soto received the Joyce Foundation award from the Sculpture Center in Cleveland, Ohio;{{Cite web |date=2024-07-31 |title=Edra Soto with The Sculpture Center |url=https://www.joycefdn.org/joyce-awards/edra-soto-with-sculpture-center |access-date=2024-08-27 |website=The Joyce Foundation |language=en}} and was selected by the New York Public Art Fund to present a project in Central Park.{{Cite web |title=Edra Soto: Graft |url=https://www.publicartfund.org/exhibitions/view/edra-soto-graft/ |access-date=2024-08-27 |website=Public Art Fund |language=en-US}} Her work was included in the group show Widening the Lens: Photography, Ecology, and the Contemporary Landscape at the Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh;{{Cite web |title=Widening the Lens: Photography, Ecology, and the Contemporary Landscape |url=https://carnegieart.org/exhibition/wtl/ |access-date=2024-08-27 |website=Carnegie Museum of Art |language=en-US}} and acquired by the Pérez Art Museum Miami, Florida.

Soto is married to Dan Sullivan, and the two are frequent creative collaborators.{{Cite web |first=Alison |last=Cuddy |date=2025-04-23 |title=Chicago’s busiest art couple is shaping the city one project at a time |url=https://www.wbez.org/arts/2025/04/23/chicago-artist-couple-edra-soto-dan-sullivan-expo-the-bear |access-date=2025-05-05 |website=WBEZ |language=en}}

• 2015 DOMINODOMINO, with Dan Sullivan, Morgan Lehman Gallery, New York, NY{{Cite web|url=http://www.morganlehmangallery.com/exhibitions/past/all/2015|title=Exhibitions - Morgan Lehman Gallery|website=www.morganlehmangallery.com|access-date=2019-02-23}}
• 2017 Manual GRAFT, University Galleries, Illinois State University, Normal IL{{Cite web|url=https://galleries.illinoisstate.edu/exhibitions/2017/soto-edra/index.php|title=Edra Soto {{!}} University Galleries - Illinois State|website=galleries.illinoisstate.edu|access-date=2019-02-23}}
• 2017 OPEN 24 HOURS, Museum of Contemporary Art of Chicago{{Cite web|url=https://mcachicago.org/Exhibitions/2017/Edra-Soto-Open-24-Hours|title=The Commons Artist Project: Edra Soto: Open 24 Hours|website=MCA|language=en|access-date=2019-02-23}}
• 2017 Traduttore,Traditore, Gallery 400, Chicago{{Cite web|url=https://gallery400.uic.edu/exhibition/past-exhibition/traduttore-traditore/|title=Traduttore, Traditore|website=Gallery 400|date=November 2017 |language=en-US|access-date=2019-02-23}}
• 2019 Forgotten Forms, Chicago Cultural Center{{Cite web|url=https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/dca/supp_info/forgotten_forms.html|title=City of Chicago: Forgotten Forms|website=www.chicago.gov|access-date=2019-02-23}}
• 2019 Cross Currents: Intercambio Cultural, Centro de Desarrollo de las Artes Visuales, Havana, Cuba and Smart Museum, Chicago (forthcoming)
• 2023 Edra Soto: Graft, Institute of Contemporary Art, San Diego, California
• 2024 Edra Soto: Graft, Central Park (as part of Public Art Fund's exhibition programming), New York

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Category:1971 births

Category:Living people

Category:21st-century Puerto Rican women educators

Category:Puerto Rican women artists

Category:Artists from Chicago

Category:School of the Art Institute of Chicago alumni

Category:20th-century Puerto Rican women educators

Category:20th-century Puerto Rican educators

Category:American women curators

Category:American curators