33 unique artists across mediums will feature their work at the exhibition in a final culmination of their artistic journey at UVic
Photo via @grad.show.pending on Instagram.
On April 16, the “Say When” exhibition — presented by the 2026 graduating class of the Bachelor of Fine Arts program, had it’s opening ceremony, and on April 17, the exhibition will open to the public. The exhibition will run until April 24 and features artwork from the 33 graduates this spring.
“Say When” is a collective effort by the graduating class, with the artists working together “all year” to raise money for the show. The artists also worked together to turn the Visual Arts Building into a gallery, temporarily moving the building’s furniture and classroom fixtures out to prepare the space.
The exhibition features work across mediums, including paintings, video installations, board games and collectibles, video games, wood carvings, and more.
Artwork by Savanna Yaremchuk. Photo by Declan Snowden.
Savanna Yaremchuk, one artist featured in the exhibition, centres her work around “grotesque feminism,” taking aspects of patriarchy and perverting them to make commentary, rather than adhering to normative standards. Much of Yaremchuk’s work is made from human hair, a commentary on the “perverting of the female body as a source of production.”
One piece, Cunnus, resembles a vagina, with the clitoris separated, which Yaremchuk says is a commentary on “the removal of the female pleasure” from the body, and the tendency for women’s bodies to be viewed as a “site to inhabit.”
“I made the inside a little bit more appealing with the intention of viewers wanting to only look at the inside rather than the outside, and be confused and averted and more wanting to experience it in a physical way inside than on a visual [way] outside,” she said.
Yaremchuk said her pieces made of human hair were inspired by her attempts to make fabric from hair. “I was trying to create a fabric material out of human hair. And I got a very illicit and guttural response from the people who were seeing it for the first time. And I happened to enjoy that,” she said.
Artwork by Liya Tensae. Photo by Declan Snowden.
Another artist, Liya Tensae, will have her paintings, which she describes as “semi-fictional autobiographical tales,” featured at the exhibition. Her art describes moments and feelings from her life, which she processes through her paintings. “[I get into] this mind-body connection where I get to puke it out onto the canvas, and then it lifts something off of my shoulders. And so my hopes for these as audience members, [and] my hope for myself is that I feel better,” she said.
“As a political science major…. I’m also trying to kind of figure out the underlying social and political norms that have influenced my way of being and understanding and making meaning in this world. So my goal — and this is, a really big goal — is that people will take a moment to look at these scenes, find themselves somewhere within them and through that also take time to process.”
Alongside painting, Tensae does video work and writing. Tensae said the fine arts program helped her develop as an artist by giving her open studio opportunities — chances to freely pursue projects — and providing studio space to develop her voice.
Artwork by Maia Shanh. Photo by Declan Snowden.
Maia Shanh, a multidisciplinary artist who works in video, photo, and SFX make-up, will have a video installation featured at the exhibition. Much of the video installation focuses on “structural powers,” with horror-inspired visuals projected onto the walls.
One such video comments on church and state, with “two Uncle Sams” — one representing the Bill of Rights and the other representing the First Amendment — puppeteered by a creepy pig. In the background, you can make out biblical angels. “It’s almost like [it’s] revealing what the power structure actually is,” Shanh said. Another video explores the power structures of the music industry.
Shanh, originally a film student, wanted to continue working in video, but without the strict structures of film. Instead, she focuses on “intense visuals” that allow the viewer to immerse themselves.
“I like catering to people who wouldn’t necessarily be interested in art…. I feel [these] type[s] of messages … are meant for them too,” she said.
Art allows us to see the world through another lens. It allows us to challenge our preconceived understandings of the forces around us by confronting a literal manifestation of another person’s perspective. Representations of the grotesque, introspective, and structural powers through art provide commentary and a unique view of the forces that affect us all.
Community members who want to see these works of art, alongside the art of the other 30 graduates of the BFA program, can visit the exhibition for free from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily until April 24.
