All art gives clues to an artist’s identity, whether through bold-stroke statements or cryptic symbolism. But can we ever see more than pieces of who these artists are? In “Fragments of Self,” a juried exhibition of SMFA at Tufts student works now on view at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA), four emerging artists reveal portions of themselves as immigrants, mythologists, historians, inheritors, and other identities that defy labels.

As the exhibit description notes, “each of these artists helps us understand how identity is not a singular idea or ideal, but a variable and evolving experience.”

The exhibit was organized with support from their MFA mentor Michelle Millar Fisher, the Ronald C. and Anita L. Wornick Curator of Contemporary Decorative Arts; MFA curatorial assistant Daisy Alejandre; and the Tufts University Art Galleries. It was curated by María Fernanda Mancera, AG23, who received her master’s in art history and museum studies from Tufts in 2023, and Nick Nemeth, AG25, a second-year graduate student in that program. 

This peer-to-peer curatorial experience is a feature of this biannual exhibition of student work, which highlights the close cooperation between the museum and the school in support of the next generation of artists and curators. 

Below, you can listen to the artists talk about some of their works, which are on display at the MFA’s Linde Gallery through April 27.

Tufts students, faculty, and staff have free admission to the MFA with a Tufts ID.