Temple University

Andrea Ray has an interdisciplinary practice that often include sculpture, sound installations, writing, and digital objects. Ray's practice approaches the subjects of kinship, attachment, and care, attempting to repair an alienated subjectivity through what Ray terms expanded affinities.  By focusing on the possibility of creating folds in time through affective contact between history and people, Ray conceives of cross-temporal conversations that create new bonds and alliances.  By disrupting the “normative” using feminist and queer forms of affinity, the work aims to create an open position from which a subject may dream—dream of a fresh ground of resistance from how we think we must relate.  

Publicly presenting work in exhibitions, publications, and for conferences, Ray has received support from many art organizations including residency awards from the Cité des Arts in Paris, MoMA P.S. 1, MacDowell Colony, and the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council. Fellowship awards include those from Art Matters and the New York Foundation for the Arts.  Ray is also a Whitney Museum of American Art Independent Study Program alum.  Their work has been included in Art Forum, Bomb Magazine, Hyperallergic, Flash Art Italia, Zing Magazine, New York Times, and Art News, among others.  

Ray has presented papers at international conferences under the utopian, gender and sexuality studies, and artistic research headings. Those include: Deep Commons organized by University College Cork, Ireland with La Terre Institute for Community and Ecology, USA (October 27-29, 2022); Queering Friendship organized by the European Research Council & Intimate, Lisbon, Portugal (October 16-18, 2018); Hauntopia/What if happening at The Research Pavilion in the context of the 57th Venice Biennale, Venice, Italy (September 7-9, 2017); and at the International Utopian Studies Society conference, Porto, Portugal (July 1-4, 2009). 

PhD, Fine Art, Malmö Art Academy of Lund University, Sweden, 2018 
MFA, Cranbrook Academy of Art, 1996 
BFA, Rhode Island School of Design, 1989 

Selected Works: 
 

Ray, A. 2021. Rest Cure [wood, concrete, speakers, 16-min audio looped] Sanctuary exhibition, Socrates Sculpture Park, New York City, October 3, 2021 - March 21, 2022 

Ray, A. 2021. Expanded Affinities, An Introduction [article] Love Spells and Rituals for Another World, editors Lilly Markaki, Caroline Harris. Independent Publishing Network, London 

Ray, A. 2020. Aspirational LPs [digital prints on cardstock, painted shelf] Acoustic Resonance exhibition, Institute of Contemporary Art, Portland, ME October 2 - December 11, 2020 

Ray, A. 2019. ReCast: A Radio Play [56-min audio] Radiophrenia art radio broadcast from Centre for Contemporary Arts, Glasgow, Scotland, May 21, 2019. 

Ray, A. 2018. Re-Cast LIVE ON-AIR [fabric, furniture, lights, copper pipe, speakers, 56-min 6-channel audio looped], IAC, Malmö, Sweden January 20 - February 16, 2018. 

Ray, A. 2014. A Reeducation [article] Not Now! Now! editor Renate Lorenz, introduction by Elizabeth Freeman, Sternberg Press, Berlin, Germany 

Ray, A. 2013. Recall, a model [wood, moss, speaker, 3-min looped audio] Imagine exhibition, Skissernas Museum, Lund, Sweden, October 26 - April 14, 2013