Yale Student Abortion Art Controversy - Aftermath

Aftermath

Scientific testing revealed no traces of human blood in Shvarts's art studio, although a Yale official noted that it was impossible to determine if her project had been examined completely. Yale sources claimed that Shvarts had admitted privately that the project was a fiction, but Shvarts said this was "ultimately inaccurate" and Peter Salovey, then dean of Yale College, announced Shvarts would not be allowed to display her work unless she also confessed publicly that it was "a work of fiction." Shvarts avoided having to sign such a statement by subsequently submitting a different senior project to her department and graduated from Yale University in May, 2008. She also denied that she had ever admitted to the University that her project was a hoax, although a Yale spokeswoman initially claimed that the denial was "part of performance" and that Shvarts had promised the University that she would deny having admitted the project was fake if the University stated so publicly. Subsequently, however, Yale admitted that it "had been unable to determine with clarity whether Ms. Shvarts had in fact undertaken actions injurious to her health in carrying out her original project."

Shvarts is currently a Ph.D. candidate in performance studies at Tisch School of the Arts.