Susan Ferency: Seeing Human Beauty

Susan Ferency was an Associate Professor in the University Bridgeport’s College of Health Science. 

She was UB's Faculty Senate President. 

She was a beloved teacher and colleague. 

She was my friend.

I was surprised last fall when she emailed me out of the blue to tell me that she wanted to submit some of her photographs to Groundswell, UB’s long-running annual magazine showcasing campus-based art and creative writing.  I was not sure what to expect, but when I opened the attachments she sent me, I forgot to breathe for a second or two. 

These weren’t some amateur backyard snapshots.  Susan sent me a series of studio photographs of a ballet dancer in motion.  The technical precision of Susan’s photographs reflected the technical precision of the ballet dancer, revealing, amplifying, and immortalizing it. 

Emily Ortiz, the UB senior who served as the Editor-in-Chief of the 2026 issue of Groundswell, was equally moved by Susan’s photographs.  “Susan’s photography was captivating in such a unique way. When I came across her email it was not a matter of ‘if’ I’d use her photos, it was ‘where.’ My decision to begin and end Groundswell with photography is one I will forever be sure of. Now, more than ever, I am honored I was able to work with such a fantastic person.”

Emily decided to use one of Susan's photos for the cover image of the 2026 issue, and another one for the image on the back cover.

The photo that was chosen for the cover of Groundswell 2026

There is an iconic quality to Susan’s photographs.  They emblematize the metamorphosis of a human into a butterfly, captured in the instant of its becoming.  The cover photo for Groundswell 2026 reveals the architectonic perfection of the human form in a posture universally recognizable as the bodily manifestation of perfect joy, limbs extended, joints poised with exquisite grace, the entire body illuminated with inner light, a facial expression of physical bliss, surrounded by an aura that is both compositional and metaphysical, the high-kicking dancer in all our hearts made visible. 

And of course, the photographs are also an expression of Susan’s own beautiful inner life, her warmth, her smile, her talent for seeing other people.

I don’t know.  Words fail me.  That’s what pictures are for.

Thank you, Susan, for sharing your gifts with us – your gifts for caring, teaching, laughing, believing, and seeing.  Your photographs are reminders of the beauty you have left to us.  They challenge us to believe in that beauty, to honor it and emulate it.

Susan Ferency