Get to know the latest cohort of what is often regarded as the “best kept secret” in the realm of MFA Studio Art programs in the United States, the University of Connecticut’s graduate studio art program. This year’s class is engaged in a diverse array of art forms, including painting and drawing, sculpture, photography and video, printmaking, and performance.
Jeanne Ciravolo focuses her art on the physicality, gesture, and movement of the human body, alongside the enigmatic nature of identity and inner life. Her approach involves developing content through an accumulation of multiple images, using formats such as grids, text-like lines, or single compositions.
Melanie Klimjack’s work aims to create alternative environments or planes through staged furniture setups and psychological landscapes. Her pieces often lack figurative representation, prompting viewers to construct a narrative influenced by furniture arrangements or ritualistic markings, touching on themes like pair bonding and abnormal psychology.
Luke Seward’s photography and videography explore the convergence of technology, architecture, and nature, utilizing creative processes that include historic, alternative, and sculptural techniques. River Soma, on the other hand, engages in a ritualistic and historiographical artistic process that is intuitive and process-based, delving into concepts of singularity, duality, and multiplicity, reflecting both individual and collective states of being.
Ting Zhou draws inspiration from personal experiences, such as her childhood memories, food, and her daughter. As a Chinese immigrant, she seeks to convey ancient Chinese philosophical concepts, like Samsara in Buddhism and Yin-yang in Taoism, through her photography and artist books.
