Mark Denaci

Mark Denaci is an Associate Professor in the Art and Art History Department at St. Lawrence University. His research explores art's intersection with gender, sexuality, and ethnicity, focusing on paradoxical spaces in cultural and artistic expression. Notable projects include studies on queer desire and the empty bed motif, Amsterdam as a perverse cultural space, and Cuban-American art's relationship with postmodernism. He actively contributes to academic discourse through conferences and publications.

Education: Ph.D. in Visual and Cultural Studies (University of Rochester, 2001); M.A. in Visual and Cultural Studies (University of Rochester, 1998); M.A. in Art History (Case Western Reserve University/Cleveland Museum of Art, 1995); M.A. in European Studies (Catholic University of Leuven, 1992); B.Ph. in Interdisciplinary Studies (Miami University, 1991).

Research interests center on art’s ambiguity between expression and objecthood, particularly in queer theory, postmodernism, and transnational cultural studies. Current projects analyze the symbolic role of empty beds in contemporary art and Amsterdam’s historical and cultural paradoxes, linking these to broader themes of identity and power.

Professional engagements include presentations at the College Art Association Annual Conference and invited talks on queer art and cultural theory. He participated in National Endowment for the Humanities seminars on queer theory and Cuban-American studies.

Teaching spans courses on Western art surveys, African-American visual culture, modern European art, and critical theory. He emphasizes interdisciplinary approaches to art’s social and historical contexts.