MEGHAN'S VOICE: BEAR WITNESS | ALAINA RULLO
Project Space Gallery
On view: April 8 – May 3, 2025
Reception: Thursday, May 1, 2025, 5-7 p.m.
Poster design by Michael Conte.
Meghan’s Voice: Bear Witness is a powerful multimedia art installation that illuminates the often-hidden realities of abusive romantic relationships. Through the story of Meghan Kiefer—a young woman whose life was tragically ended by domestic violence—the exhibition portrays the escalating cycle of abuse that led to her untimely death. This immersive environment allows visitors to connect deeply with Meghan’s humanity and is brought to life through diverse media including photography, acrylic paintings, silhouette cutouts, and graphic design. In addition to Meghan’s personal narrative, the installation exposes the broader societal impact of domestic violence, revealing its alarming prevalence across the U.S. At its core, Meghan’s Voice serves as a call to action. It bridges the personal and the collective and challenges viewers to move beyond passive observation while creating space for advocacy and empathy. Visitors are invited to confront the emotional toll of abuse, understand its pervasive societal presence, and reflect on the urgent need for compassion and intervention.
Meghan’s Voice: Bear Witness
Further Readings
Bloom, Allison. Violence Never Heals: The Lifelong Effects of Intimate Partner Violence for Immigrant Women. NYU Press, 2023. https://nyupress.org/9781479822072/violence-never-heals/
Brooks-Hay, Oona, et al., editors. Domestic Abuse: Contemporary Perspectives and Innovative Practices. Dunedin, 2018. https://suny-one.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01SUNY_ONE/19u1a1p/alma996463375104804
Creative Interventions. Creative Interventions, 2025, https://www.creative-interventions.org/.
Crenshaw, Kimberlé. “Mapping the Margins: Intersectionality, Identity Politics, and Violence against Women of Color.” Stanford Law Review, vol. 43, no. 6, 1991, pp. 1241–1299. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/1229039. Accessed 24 Apr. 2025.
Domestic Abuse Intervention Programs. "What Is The Duluth Model?" Domestic Abuse Intervention Programs, 2024, https://www.theduluthmodel.org/what-is-the-duluth-model/.
Goodmark, Leigh. Imperfect Victims: Criminalized Survivors and the Promise of Abolition Feminism. University of California Press, 2023. https://www.ucpress.edu/books/imperfect-victims/paper
Gruber, Aya. The Feminist War on Crime: The Unexpected Role of Women's Liberation in Mass Incarceration. University of California Press, 2021. https://suny-one.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01SUNY_ONE/19u1a1p/alma996639512404804
INCITE! Women of Color Against Violence, editors. Color of Violence: The INCITE! Anthology. Duke University Press, 2016. https://www.dukeupress.edu/color-of-violence
Potter, Hillary. Battle Cries: Black Women and Intimate Partner Abuse. NYU Press, 2008. https://suny-one.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01SUNY_ONE/19u1a1p/alma996295052904804
Richie, Beth. Arrested Justice: Black Women, Violence, and America’s Prison Nation. 1st ed., NYU Press, 2012, pp. xv–xv. https://suny-one.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01SUNY_ONE/1s9qm60/cdi_proquest_miscellaneous_1082142899
Snyder, Rachel Louise. No Visible Bruises: What We Don’t Know About Domestic Violence Can Kill Us. Bloomsbury, 2020. https://www.globalgrit.com/no-visible-bruises
Stoever, Jane K., editor. The Politicization of Safety: Critical Perspectives on Domestic Violence Responses. NYU Press, 2025. https://suny-one.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01SUNY_ONE/19u1a1p/alma996631593304804
Sweet, Paige. The Politics of Surviving: How Women Navigate Domestic Violence and Its Aftermath. University of California Press, 2021. https://suny-one.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01SUNY_ONE/19u1a1p/alma996756301604804
TransformHarm.org. TransformHarm.org: A Resource Hub for Ending Violence, 2023, https://transformharm.org/.