Miguel Ferrando

1957–1996

Ferrando was born in 1957 in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Although he moved to New York at age five, Ferrando returned to Santo Domingo several times throughout his life and his diligent observations of the city and Dominican culture were integral to his artistic practice.Although it was cut short by his death at age thirty-eight, Ferrando’s practice was characterized by an unwavering dedication to his work, heedless of trends at the time. Ferrando lived off Delancey Street and was active in the nightlife of downtown New York, performing drag at the Pyramid Club on Avenue A. He was close friends with artists Richard Brintzenhofe, Darrel Ellis, Allen Frame, Malcolm Morley, and Ann Wilson. In 1990, Wilson organized a solo exhibition of Ferrando’s work at filmmaker and activist K. K. Kean’s loft at 161 Mulberry Street in New York.

Between 1973 and 1980, Ferrando studied at the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, the Brooklyn Museum Art School, and with Guillo Pérez at the Escuela de Bellas Artes Santo Domingo. His work has been featured in group exhibitions at the Boston Center for the Arts; CANDICE MADEY, New York; Galerie Ziegler, Zurich; Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, New York; National Arts Club, New York; White Columns, New York; and Visual AIDS, New York. Luxe, Calme, Volupté, a group exhibition at CANDICE MADEY in 2023 marked the first exhibition of his work since 2000.