Jefferson Kielwagen, currently in residence at Michigan State University where he has been pursuing an MFA, was born and raised in Brazil. He received his MA in Theory and History of Art at the Universidade do Estado de Santa Catarina and also studied graphic design as an undergraduate at UTESC, both in Brazil. His art practice is an ongoing search for familiar objects, images, and actions through which he can project discourses and reveries. He is particularly interested in identity, sexuality, religion, and violence in its various forms.