Carrying the Thick Present: The 2021 Syracuse MFA Thesis Exhibition

Trauma at Community Folk Art Center: Six artists deal with forms of trauma. Collecting the ongoing pasts that are attached to the thick presents, they explore the trauma that has stemmed from war, violence, and social conflicts. These works are carriers of traumatic histories and presents. Some remind us that the bio- and earth-trauma are entangled in intricate relationships, that we are on the verge of extinction and decay. Yet, for others, there are forms of repair and renewal. Biodesign and virtual reality open up possibilities of hopeful temporalities for life and the earth. Rather than closure to traumatic events, these works engage with trauma to meditate on togetherness, on our shared sense of belonging-with.

Art, and all the artists in this exhibition, have the capacity to cultivate conditions for our being and ongoingness-with others in the precarious thick present we live in and with it. Art, and these works, hold the capacity to collect ongoing pasts, stay with thick presents, and reimagine still possible futures. When viewing these works, bear this in mind.

At this time, in-person visits are limited to Syracuse University students, faculty, and staff only, please email cfac@syr.edu

 

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