Maura Jasper is a visual artist and filmmaker whose work explores the intersections of history, pop culture and mass media as influences that inform our individual and collective sense of self. Much of her work involves or is inspired by the lives of regular people. Works range from large-scale participatory projects (Punk Rock Aerobics, Weather You Remember) to studies of people and place inspired by existing historical documents (Wish You Were Here, The Gates, Without Words). Oftentimes her work functions as a bridge between art and non-art experiences, inviting participation and bringing people back into the process of cultural production. By taking on the trappings of mass media forms not normally considered art –such as karaoke, aerobics instruction, or weather reports, these forms become vehicles for empowerment, ones that function as backdrops in which each individual’s stories, dreams, and expectations can unfold. Her work has been exhibited and screened at venues such as Artist's Space, Vox Populi, and the Institute for Contemporary Art in Boston. She is the Artistic Director of That One Film Festival and a co-founder of the experimental media collective Death Factory. She is probably best known for her work as a co-founder of Punk Rock Aerobics, the DIY workout and her album art for Dinosaur Jr. Born and raised in Worcester, Massachusetts, she is currently an Associate Professor of Intermedia Art at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana.