Made Masculine: Ready to be Remade featuring THE WEIGHT: Playboys and Vogue, 2017, Museum of Art, University of New Hampshire
"Spiro walked around the museum holding the purses high above her head. Her heels clicked against the floors as each step the audience grew more tense, hoping she would be able to withstand the weight placed on her" - Nick D'Aloia, The New Hampshire, staff writer.
"By performing on a runway composed of alluring magazines, the likes of Vogue and Playboy, tension is drawn between the societal standards for both men and women. With this layout, masculinity may be referenced by both the magazines, composed of erotic images which may beguile men, and the act of weightlifting, which requires a particular physical prowess. Femininity, on the other hand, is depicted solely through the magazines, where women are modeled and posed as if they are delicate dolls in an attempt to personify beauty itself. " - Sebastian Mandino, Museum of Art, Fellow.
"Kledia Spiro’s parents are willing and wedded co-performers in her 2-channel video Trousseau. The channels emphasize the endurance and repetition of training, as well as isolate each parent in a separate frame. Her parents only come together through Spiro’s attempt to lift them. Her performance offers an image of strength and athleticism that challenges assumptions of these characteristics as male, and binds them to heritage." - Curator, Lisa Crossman, P.h.D.