Student Galleries | Spring 2026

Marilyn and Cline Duff Gallery

RILEY SCHRUM ( Drawing & Painting, BFA )
Man Enough To Be A Bitch?

Public Reception | February 18, 4:00 – 6:00 PM
Exhibition Dates | February 17 – February 21

---

This exhibition showcases the questions, “what is gender without influence of the patriarchy?” “Does falling within the Binary create expectations?” Each piece illustrates a different conflict I have had over the process of my transition that began 6 years ago. One of my earliest memories is being smacked on my behind at a competition swim meet at around 8 years old while in my swimsuit. From that moment I was hyper aware of what my gender meant in the context of the patriarchy. Being non-binary feels like a true representation of myself, taking myself out of the binary feels freeing from any gender expectations. Although I feel free to diverge from any societal roles or expectations, I do feel the pressure to fall back into the binary as I grow older. Now I am transitioning medically but I still feel safe in my label of nonbianry due to the negative weight of the patriarchy. I feel like a man and I am starting to look like a man, but what is a man if not a representative of the patriarchy? This collection evokes a sense of bleak stillness that represents my apathy for gender roles, while discovering what gender is without the traditional definition of those rules.