[fuck if i know]
Master’s of Fine Art thesis exhibition
Backspace Gallery, Art Lofts, University of Wisconsin-Madison
this is for me. this is my graduate school experience.
showcased in giant 60x80” prints from a floppy disk camera gifted to me by the most wonderfully nerdy old man i used to work with, they are hung haphazardly with random recycled wood and giant binder clips. i spent time writing on the backs of each photo and continued to update them as i processed my divorce, top surgery, and a professor sexually assaulting and harassing me. i wrote on the walls of the entryway with my fingers, adding a different color every time i finished the phrase
“PROFESSOR LISA GRALNICK EXPOSED HER BARE BREASTS TO ME AS AN ACT OF ANTI-TRANS VIOLENCE.”
i updated the wall during the reception to include
“P.S. Brit got an email that says she sacrificed the integrity of the gallery”
as our department made it extremely clear our work was not welcome or appreciated in these campus spaces
during our receptions, we received emails harassing us about gallery cleanup and the department’s lack of support
brit is my co-collaborator for a lot of my work; we had our MFA theses receptions at the same time to host one big party
you can check out her work here: https://www.brittanyweekley.com/
***
in the large white backspace area, i wrote on the walls:
I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW I’M WRITING THIS TOPLESS
I WANT CHANGE
People in power should not be able to fascilitate abuse and violence especially DECADES OF ABUSE
AS OF APRIL 6, 2023 8:08 PM
SHE IS STILL ALLOWED IN THIS BUILDING
LAST WEEK
MARCH 28, 2023
SHE EXPOSED HER BARE BREASTS TO ME AS AN ACT OF ANTI-TRANS VIOLENCE
LAST MAY
SHE RECEIVED $100K FROM THE SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
the gallery is silent as viewers are welcome to explore the clotheslines of posters of giant blurry photos and read the backs of all my trauma and feelings i’ve kept inside for the last three years.
this show was liberating and as much as there were polarizing perspectives of the work, i’m grateful to have had an opportunity to claim that space as my own
even just for a moment
it’s ok to share your feelings.
