Laura Lima (b. 1971 Brazil) works with the human body, using it as an element of a larger whole; connecting it to, or contrasting it with, other objects. Lima comments: "I am...interested in the intricate social relationships, the exchange of behaviors that in time serves to alter our perception of the quotidian, the every day."Often in her works, the body carries out metaphors of social behaviors and conditioning through performances or ‘Instances’. These include: Doped (1997), in which a tranquillized woman was attached by crochet to a gallery wall; To Age (2004), in which gallery staff were made to look like their future, more wrinkled, selves through the use of theatrical make-up; and Customs Store (2006), where visitors were encouraged to purchase unusual clothing made of blue vinyl and wear them routinely in their daily lives.

Laura Lima was born in Minas Gerais, Brazil. She graduated in Philosophy at the State University of Rio de Janeiro and studied at the Visual Arts School of Parque Lage in Rio de Janeiro. Lima has had solo exhibitions at the Reina Sofia Museum, Madrid, Spain; Museu do Estado. Recife-PE. Brazil; Museu de Arte da Pampulha, Belo Horizonte, Brazil; Galeria Luisa Strina, São Paulo, Brazil; Hardcore Art Contemporary Space, Miami; and Chapter Art Center, Cardiff, Wales. Her work has been included in group shows and festivals around the globe including Arco Madrid Contemporary Art Fair, Madrid Spain, 2006 Sao Paulo Biennale, and Frieze,London, UK. She is a partner of the Galleria A Gentil Carioca in downtown Rio de Janeiro with Marcio Botner and Ernesto Neto. The three formed the gallery in 2002 to develop long-term collaborations with young Brazilian artists, to create educational activities that bring about cultural exchange, and to promote Brazilian artists abroad through collaborations with international galleries and at art fairs. Laura Lima lives and works in Rio de Janeiro.

Laura Lima spent her 2010 residency immersing herself in the atmosphere and daily life of the museum. On her morning visits, Lima took extensive photographs of the paintings and objects in the galleries and met with staff. She looked at materials in the archives and several books from the collection including an edition of Passino Christi with 34 Woodcut Prints by Albrecht Durer. Lima also took weekend trips to New York City and MassMOCA in North Adams, MA, and attended many programs and lectures in the Boston area.