Kendra Paitz is Director and Chief Curator at University Galleries of Illinois State University. She has organized solo exhibitions of work by Terry Adkins, Jen Bervin, Stephanie Brooks, Kendell Carter, Juan Angel Chávez, Bethany Collins, william cordova, Margaret Crowley, Jess T. Dugan, Adam Farcus, Dianna Frid, Aram Han Sifuentes, Alice Hargrave, Erin Hayden, Oliver Herring (co-curated with Barry Blinderman), Gina Hunt, Stanya Kahn, Caroline Kent, Wonsook Kim, Irena Knezevic (Irena Haiduk), Jason Lazarus (co-curated with Barry Blinderman), Laura Letinsky, Norman W. Long, Nazafarin Lotfi, Cecil McDonald Jr. (co-curated), Schuyler Maehl, Basim Magdy, Kambui Olujimi, Ebony G. Patterson, Jason Reblando, Melanie Schiff, Carrie Schneider, Shinique Smith, Deb Sokolow, Rafael Soldi, Edra Soto, Anna Von Mertens, Lori Waxman, and Rana Young, among others. Her group exhibitions include All Hearts Beneath the Sun, An Infinite and Omnivorous Sky, Strange Oscillations and Vibrations of Sympathy, The House of the Seven Gables, Orison for the Forest, and but you gave me flowers.
Paitz has edited and supervised the publication of fifteen exhibition catalogues at University Galleries. Paitz's essays and interviews have been published by University Galleries of Illinois State University, Normal, Illinois; Tisch School of the Arts, New York University; Hyde Park Art Center, Chicago; Daylight Books; Des Moines Art Center, Des Moines, Iowa; and Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, among others. She has been the Principal Investigator for multiple grants awarded by each of the following: The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, National Endowment for the Arts, Elizabeth Firestone Graham Foundation, and Illinois Arts Council, among others. In 2018, Paitz founded the Teen Art Group at University Galleries. In 2026, she founded the Creative Practice Lab—co-organized with students AJ Westley and Christina Dababneh—at University Galleries. She was also the founding director at Violet Poe Projects, an independent artist-project space in her home from 2010-2015.
Paitz sees herself not only as an exhibition-maker and writer, but also as an educator and advocate. (Interview. Interview. Interview.) She is deeply committed to collaboration and outreach, developing free programming that extends beyond the gallery walls. Examples include organizing Oliver Herring's collaborative TASK Parties with educators throughout the Midwest; engaging Illinois State University's Debate Team in a performance with Irena Knezevic; collaborating with Normal Community High School's Experimental Ensemble as they compose and perform new scores inspired by exhibitions; presenting Norman W. Long's Sound Walk through campus and Uptown Normal; partnering with the Illinois State University Planetarium to screen Kambui Olujimi's "Skywriters;" curating outdoor projects; organizing satellite exhibitions and reading groups; partnering with not-for-profit organizations for tours of nature preserves; and working with faculty and students in the School of Theatre and Dance to create site-responsive performances. In the past four years, University Galleries has been the three-time recipient of the Center for Civic Engagement's Unit Award for "leading numerous activities that highlight its dedication to community service, civic learning, and activism."
Paitz has edited and supervised the publication of fifteen exhibition catalogues at University Galleries. Paitz's essays and interviews have been published by University Galleries of Illinois State University, Normal, Illinois; Tisch School of the Arts, New York University; Hyde Park Art Center, Chicago; Daylight Books; Des Moines Art Center, Des Moines, Iowa; and Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, among others. She has been the Principal Investigator for multiple grants awarded by each of the following: The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, National Endowment for the Arts, Elizabeth Firestone Graham Foundation, and Illinois Arts Council, among others. In 2018, Paitz founded the Teen Art Group at University Galleries. In 2026, she founded the Creative Practice Lab—co-organized with students AJ Westley and Christina Dababneh—at University Galleries. She was also the founding director at Violet Poe Projects, an independent artist-project space in her home from 2010-2015.
Paitz sees herself not only as an exhibition-maker and writer, but also as an educator and advocate. (Interview. Interview. Interview.) She is deeply committed to collaboration and outreach, developing free programming that extends beyond the gallery walls. Examples include organizing Oliver Herring's collaborative TASK Parties with educators throughout the Midwest; engaging Illinois State University's Debate Team in a performance with Irena Knezevic; collaborating with Normal Community High School's Experimental Ensemble as they compose and perform new scores inspired by exhibitions; presenting Norman W. Long's Sound Walk through campus and Uptown Normal; partnering with the Illinois State University Planetarium to screen Kambui Olujimi's "Skywriters;" curating outdoor projects; organizing satellite exhibitions and reading groups; partnering with not-for-profit organizations for tours of nature preserves; and working with faculty and students in the School of Theatre and Dance to create site-responsive performances. In the past four years, University Galleries has been the three-time recipient of the Center for Civic Engagement's Unit Award for "leading numerous activities that highlight its dedication to community service, civic learning, and activism."