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relics of intimacy


School of The Art Institute of Chicago Graduate Exhibition One
February 17-26, 2026

Documentation by Mikey Mosher






๐˜๐˜ฐ๐˜ธ ๐˜ช๐˜ด ๐˜ข ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ต ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ณ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฅ?

In casting loversโ€™ undergarments paired with textile relics, handwritten notes, and analog photographs, I manifest the physical and emotional remains left after filmed intimate encounters. Residual stains and impressions of a stranger emerge within each tableau as individual entries mark an elegy for a persona I have confronted in heated rendezvous.



๐˜๐˜ฐ๐˜ธ ๐˜ฅ๐˜ฐ ๐˜ธ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ต๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ฃ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฅ๐˜ช๐˜ฆ๐˜ด ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ต ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฉ๐˜บ๐˜ด๐˜ช๐˜ค๐˜ข๐˜ญ๐˜ญ๐˜บ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ ๐˜ด๐˜ฑ๐˜ช๐˜ณ๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜ถ๐˜ข๐˜ญ๐˜ญ๐˜บ ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฐ ๐˜ญ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ๐˜จ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฑ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ด๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ต?

With this collection of works, I aim to call on the parallels drawn between the care we give to the dead and the aftercare given to a lover after an intimate encounter. Conventions of enshrinement meet the queering of domestic space to call into question how familiar gestures of intimacy can speak to the sanctity of the body.



๐˜Š๐˜ข๐˜ฏ ๐˜ธ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ญ๐˜ข๐˜บ ๐˜ง๐˜ญ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฆ๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜ฆ๐˜น๐˜ฑ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ช๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ค๐˜ฆ๐˜ด ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ด๐˜ต ๐˜ข๐˜ด ๐˜ธ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ธ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ญ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ช๐˜ข๐˜ญ๐˜ช๐˜ป๐˜ฆ ๐˜ข ๐˜ฉ๐˜ถ๐˜ฎ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ ๐˜ฃ๐˜ฆ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ?

I yearn for onlookers to reflect on the different ways care may present itself, as well as the myriad ways grief may manifest when considering the treatment of once-autonomous bodies after they are no longer present in physical space.




come in and close the door behind you (sexile)
2026


soft ground etching on laser-cut hahnemuhle copperplate; spit bite aquatint, ร  la poupรฉe on mulberry paper chine-collรฉ. installed on slip cast porcelain door knob
10โ€ x 4โ€.

relics of intimacy - installation images

relic no.1 (bed)
2026
linen bedsheets worn from september 7, 2023 to february 2, 2025 stretched over poplar armature; metal leaf, LEDs.ย 
72"H x 54"D x 10"D



relic no.2 (cloth)
cotton, polyester, and nylon handwoven on TC2; dye sublimation.
27"W x 62"L



relic no.3 (candle)
blown glass, cast wax, cotton wicks.
variable dimensions, wicks are 6 feet and 1 inch long.
a preemptive elegy - installation images


dylan - august 14, 2025. ย 
mars - may 15, 2025.
cole - march 21, 2025.
sammy - august 6, 2025.
andy - may 24, 2025.
rudy - july 12, 2025.


red oak hardwood flooring, screen printed wood stain, metal leaf, cast wax

dylan - august 14, 2025 (left) and mars - may 15, 2025 (right)
dylan - august 14, 2025
2026. red oak hardwood flooring, screen printed woodstain, metal leaf, cast wax. 60" x 29".
dylan - august 14, 2025
detail
dylan - august 14, 2025
detail
mars - may 15, 2025
2026. red oak hardwood flooring, screen printed wood stain, metal leaf, cast wax. 68โ€ x 27โ€.
mars - may 15, 2025
detail.
cole - march 21, 2025 (left) andย sammy - august 6, 2025 (right)
cole - march 21, 2025
2026. red oak hardwood flooring, screen printed wood stain, metal leaf, cast wax. 69โ€ x 27โ€
cole - march 21, 2025
ย detail
sammy - august 6, 2025
2026. red oak hardwood flooring, screen printed wood stain, metal leaf, cast wax. 66โ€ x 27โ€
sammy - august 6, 2025
detail
andy - may 24, 2025 (left) and rudy - july 12, 2025 (right)
andy - may 24, 2025
2026. red oak hardwood flooring, screen printed wood stain, metal leaf, cast wax. 68โ€ x 27โ€.
andy - may 24, 2025
detail
rudy - july 12, 2025
2026. red oak hardwood flooring, screen printed wood stain, metal leaf, cast wax. 68โ€ x 27โ€