CONNERSMITH. THE ARMORY SHOW 2020
SUSAN MACWILLIAM
FOCUS, Curated by Jamillah James

March 5 - 8, 2020
Pier 90, Booth F24

CONNERSMITH is pleased to present a select survey of work by Susan MacWilliam (b. 1969, Belfast, Northern Ireland) at The Armory Show.

In photography, video, neon and sculpture, MacWilliam explores overlooked histories in paranormal psychology, engaging a range of phenomena including mediumship, ectoplasm, x-ray vision, telepathy, clairvoyance and Dermo Optics. Using anecdote, reconstruction and detailed editing to expand methods of interpretation and forms of portraiture, the artist considers the lives, personalities and experimental apparatus of parapsychology from a female perspective.

As MacWilliam delves into topics of hysteria, witchcraft and melancholy, she posits psychical research as an expression of patriarchal control over women’s autonomy. Her works reveal the creation of rich, multifaceted inner-worlds inhabited by those living outside of societal conventions, in spaces where pressures of normality and conformity may lead to paranoia, repression and even persecution.

Jamillah James, Curator, Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, included MacWilliam among today’s most relevant and compelling artists in the 2020 Focus section. MacWilliam’s works have been exhibited internationally including the Venice Biennale; the British Library; Highlanes Gallery, Drogheda, FE McWilliam Gallery, Banbridge; QUAD, Derby; NN Contemporary Art, Northampton; Jan van Eyck Academie, Maastricht; The Agency, London; Heidelberger Kunstverein, and nGbK, Berlin.