Marc Swanson's work examines the notion of masculine identity through a variety of media ranging from film, to sculpture, installation, and painting. Reconciling queer sensibility with the ultra conservatism of rural folk arts, Swanson's Psychic Studies approaches themes of power, spirituality and tradition through an aesthetic of heightened sensuality. Psychic Studies takes the form of a large reflective wall mount; its radial motif suggestive of a web, shield, mystical symbol, or hunting lodge fixture. Constructed from painted wood and mirrored acrylic, Swanson's form exudes the timeless potency of artefact and the illicit allure of kitsch.Swanson's honky-tonk environment initially seemed to be at odds with his purportedly self-revelatory intent. Each tired symbol pumped up the volume of exhausted artifice. Yet on some level, the contrivance of this deliberately awful down-and-out setting, with its dime-store mannequins and cheaply realized decor--made with, among other things, glitter, sgraffitoed Plexiglas, hockey tape, hanging T-shirts, rope nets, dirt and deerskin--seemed to offer an authentic glimpse into the artist's sense of abject futility, Goth morbidity and misplaced projection of gay fabulousness.This exhibition is a representation of the artist's continuing pursuit of self-awareness via the artistic process. Consisting of three main components, it is as if the work has been dreamed up by Swanson's subconscious manifesting in glitter and etched mirror-paintings, hand-made glass sculptures, and a large-scale dioramic installation.Also in the front gallery, five glass arrows seem to have been shot into the wall. These sculptures act as poetic anachronisms, futile and impossible in reality, but pleasurable for their romantic gesture.

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