Throughout the semester, we’re shining a light on the Art Department’s graduating MFA candidates as they present their final thesis exhibitions. These exhibitions are the culmination of years of dedicated study and artistic exploration, showcasing our students’ diverse talents and innovative approaches to art-making.
Swan Ferraro is an interdisciplinary artist working in installation, sculpture, photography, and film. They describe their work as “researching creative improvisation as a form of divination in the trans body.” This manifests through the performance and documentation of somatic rituals using a variety of mediums, including somatic movement and dance, alternative intimacies such as BDSM, and envisioning exercises involving queer futures.
Ferraro’s final thesis exhibition, “The Betwixt Body,” will be on view at UW–Madison’s Gallery 7 on the seventh floor of the Humanities Building (455 N. Park St.) from March 10–14. A reception, which is free and open to the public, will take place on Wednesday, March 11, from 5 to 7 p.m.
We asked Ferraro to share some insights into their work:
Would you explain the context and meaning behind each of the images you shared?
The first image (with brances) is from installation tests I did last year for my exhibition, “Transmutation.” I was inspired to use sheer fabric for that show and my upcoming show because of its spiritual quality: the see-through textile has a ghostly feeling to it. Trauma healing sometimes feels like being a ghost, and the fabric conveys this feeling of being invisible yet visible.
The second image was taken while I was doing installation tests for my thesis show. Using similar see-through fabric, I wanted to float the fabric through the entire pathway of the gallery to highlight the in-between space of this gallery that is also an architectural hallway. I’m inspired by pathways and what they symbolize, and using the fabric in this way brings the ghostly quality of healing to the forefront of the path.
What do you hope viewers take away from your exhibition?
My goal is for viewers to experience hope and beauty admidst struggle. Although my art emphasizes queer and trans experience, it is an invitation for everyone to heal regardless of identity or background.