Over the last few months we have been offering a glimpse into the creative process of the Art Department’s graduating master of fine arts candidates, who are presenting their final thesis exhibitions throughout the spring semester. These exhibitions represent the culmination of years of dedicated study and artistic exploration, showcasing our students’ diverse talents and innovative approaches to art-making.
Sam Northcut, a Temkin Exhibition Awardee, is a cross-disciplinary artist focused in textiles and woodworking. Currently, they seek to illuminate queer visibility in the everyday using familiar objects and spaces like quilts and bathrooms. Queer history, craft, and labor are keystones to their practice.
Northcut’s final thesis exhibition, “Cruise Control,” will be on view in Gallery 7 in the Humanities Building from April 15–19. A reception, which is free and open to the public, will take place on Wednesday, April 17, from 5 to 7:30 p.m.
Northcut shared some insights about one of their works, “Glory,” which will be part of the exhibition. Following is an edited Q&A:
What inspired you to create this work? For this work, titled “Glory,” I was thinking about the history of gay cruising for sex on UW–Madison’s own campus, predominantly in the bathrooms. Thinking in the context of the gay purge in the 1960s and ’70s, I wanted to make a piece that talked about cruising as an important act of resistance and to glorify it, drawing comparisons to a church confessional.
How did you create it? In this piece, I used white oak, cane, duct tape, and bathroom stall hardware. There are three hand-caned panels that take months to fully weave. I took the dimensions of the actual bathroom stalls and made the bones of the stalls out of white oak.
What do you hope viewers take away from the exhibition? I hope that this exhibition reminds viewers that a space for intimacy can be made anywhere, and that liberation and resistance can have many forms, including the simple act of finding pleasure for yourself.