Behind VA Shadows, in partnership with the Harvard Square Business Association and Intercontinental Management, is pleased to  welcome “Dissection of a Specter”, the latest installation at the 25/8 artspace project located at 2 Linden Street in Harvard Square.  Behind VA Shadows presents this group exhibition curated by Patrick Brennan, on view through July 17th, 2025. Featuring six contemporary artists working across performance, photography, sculpture, and installation, Dissection of a Specter offers a quiet but potent reflection on queer identity, visibility, and coded resistance.

Denise Jillson, executive director of the Harvard Square Business Association, commented, “We’re so pleased to continue our collaboration with Intercontinental Management and Yolanda He Yang on this, our third art installation at the 25/8 artspace. This popup gallery exhibits beautiful artwork that is to be enjoyed “from the street” in an unexpected location in Harvard Square.!”  

At the heart of the exhibition is the concept of negative space—visual and cultural veils through which queerness is expressed, protected, and affirmed. Drawing on a historical lineage of encoded communication—such as handkerchief codes, neoclassical nudes, and literary subtexts—the works in this exhibition speak most clearly to those within the LGBTQ+ community and their allies. These are works made not to explain, but to resonate.


Courtesy of Behind VA Shadows

Presented during a time of increased political tension and rollback of LGBTQ+ protections, this exhibition confronts two overlapping ghosts: the present-day specter of fear and unease, and the historical specter of queer lives lived through codes, symbols, and secrecy. The choice to take a more introspective and somber tone—especially during June, a month often marked by celebration—honors the enduring resilience of queer communities and the quiet power of symbolism passed down across generations.

Courtesy of Behind VA Shadows

Each artist in the show reimagines this lineage, embedding meaning in the folds, shadows, and surfaces of their materials. Their visual languages are not always legible at first glance—but for those who recognize them, they offer a mirror, a memory, a map.

Courtesy of Behind VA Shadows

About Behind VA Shadows

Founded in 2022, Behind VA Shadows is a public art initiative currently based at 2 Linden Street in Cambridge, MA. The project seeks to amplify the voices of working artists employed within art museums and cultural institutions by breaking down the traditional barriers between art and the public. Through its ongoing programming at 25/8 artspace, curated by Yolanda He Yang and co-presented by the Harvard Square Business Association and Intercontinental Management, Behind VA Shadows reclaims space for experimental, accessible, and community-rooted art practices.