In addition to the discussion there will be a participatory activity inspired by the artist’s drawing installation 74 Minutes.
Ranging from video and sculpture, to drawing and archival materials, the artworks in the exhibition collectively express a form of “embodied testimony” based on the artist’s research and her lived experience as a sexual assault survivor. Drawing parallels between her own experience of gender-based violence with the violence routinely inflicted upon the ecology of the ocean floor, Magnusson’s work invites empathy and contemplation of difficult, often suppressed topics.
Please be advised that this exhibition includes themes of sexual violence and trauma, which some viewers may find distressing. It may also be the case that some viewers may not notice any impact until after engaging with the exhibit. A list of available resources and supports will be available at the front desk of the gallery, and we encourage you to consider accessing these as needed.
The discussion is presented by UWAG and UW Fine Arts in conjunction with the UW Sexual Violence Prevention Response Office. The artist also acknowledges the support of the Canada Council for the Arts.
Image Credit: Laura Magnusson, Up through Water, Into Stark Light, 2023, bronze cast of an authentic Arctica islandica clamshell, wire, brass fishhook, brass medical swab, mirror. Photo: Scott Lee.
Laura Magnusson (she/her) is a Canadian interdisciplinary artist and filmmaker based in Montreal, Quebec (Tiohtià:ke/). Magnusson’s current research-creation explores and elucidates felt experiences of trauma through installation, sculpture, drawing, performance, and video. She is a trained scuba diver who has filmed underwater in Iceland and Mexico, using the medium water as a site for healing and reconnecting to the body. Magnusson holds an MFA in Interdisciplinary Art from the University of Michigan (2019), and is currently pursuing a PhD in Interdisciplinary Humanities at Concordia University, funded by a Doctoral Scholarship from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
Meaghan Ross (she/her) is the Sexual Violence Response Coordinator at the Sexual Violence Prevention Response Office, University of Waterloo; a role through which she supports those impacted by sexual violence to access resources, and to make decisions for themselves about available options. Meaghan also provides campus-wide education on best practices for receiving disclosures, unpacking gendered violence, and creating a consent culture. Working on a post-secondary campus provides Meaghan with a unique opportunity to be a part of, and motivated by, ongoing transformative, collective learning.