2023 MFA Thesis Exhibition with Hannah Patteson and Mia Greenwald

4 April - 2 May, 2023

JMU’s annual MFA Thesis Exhibitions showcase the breadth of artistic possibilities in its MFA program as well as the intersectionality of studio practice and education for which JMU is known. There will be an exhibition reception held on Tuesday, April 4^th from 5-7pm at Duke Gallery and an artist talk with Mia Greenwald and Hannah Patteson on Friday, April 7th at 4:30pm.  

In Dirt Circus, Hannah Patteson uses a large variety of found material including home furnishings, early 2000s memorabilia, sports equipment, fabric, wood, and metals. Her work draws on the history of the circus while also queering its vocabulary. Her interest in the circus comes from her experiences as a roller derby player, stilts walker, amateur trapezist, and tap dancer. Patteson reveals that she might have driven the clown car for Ringling Barnum and Bailey Circus in the past as well.

Mia Greenwald is an interdisciplinary artist and gardener who explores themes of magic, the human body, and landscape.  Exploring the era of witch trials in pre-modern Europe, Greenwald creates anchor points from which to critique and fracture capitalism, colonialism, and their resulting climate catastrophe. Heretic Territories: Spells for Fracture is grounded in Greenwald’s own bodily experiences and Trans identity. Embodiment becomes a tool for connection and unlearning as Greenwald engages with experimental processes and ritual.