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Works in Progress

"Embracing Childhood"

"Embracing Childhood"

Images and videos shown are not completed works, and are for concept purposes only

Installation/Exhibition

Oh! to be Young again!!! Right!?!

Am I right?

 

"Embracing Childhood"

invites you back home

...to see again through the eyes of a child.

But will it be a childhood you recognize?

 

"Embracing Childhood" is an interactive, multimedia exhibition, looking at the dark side of childhood and the bright side of childhood trauma.

 

When an over-fifty, permanently-disabled, quasi-homeless, single-mother artist is (perhaps not so) unexpectedly plunged into an abyss of depression, her familiar boundaries blurring and crumbling around her, an unwelcomed exploration of the origins of behavior thrusts her work and world into unfamiliar territories, far beyond the bounds of comfort.

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This page is an introduction to the "Embracing Childhood"

Truly astonishing influences shared during a recent nine-month Artist Fellowship, where I intended to expand my body of work in (of all things) carved eggshells, ended up catapulting my work far from the comfortable miniature, minute detail I was most known for, spontaneously erupting, instead, into life-sized sculptures from relevant but random materials, far beyond my previous scope and scale.  Soon an entire story started writing itself, unfolding layer after layer before me, with piece upon piece popping into existence, fitting itself into place.  

The words Trauma, Abuse and Neglect provoke the starkest, most compelling understanding of those words, but what does this look like in terms of shared imagery, and how is the "grey zone" defined?  Trauma, Abuse and Neglect are a spectrum of many shades and sources, and the ability to recognize these levels and degrees in ourselves and others is a fundamental starting point toward empathy and resolution.  "Embracing Childhood" aims to color-in some of those black and white concepts, painting a fuller, more robust picture of what abuse, neglect and trauma are, and how they shape and mold ourselves and our communities, whether we realize it or not.

"Childhood"  hopes everyone will

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RANT & RAVE! 

Recognize Abuse Neglect and Trauma

&

Respect And Value Everyone

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(actual artwork not shown)

"No Places Like Home"

Guests first encounter the bright colorful joy that is the unspoken promise of youth, and the welcomed sight of the familiar doorway home.

But closed doors hide so much.

"Step In"

When you enter the space, you're stepping into someone else's shoes.

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You're startled by a lightening flash & a thunder clash as you pass the threshold, and the realization that you're now under a very black cloud.

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...and you don't have an umbrella.

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"Remembering Childhood"

Directly facing you now is the painful start of it all: memories of childhood. 

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Do you continue deeper into the room, or do you close your eyes and turn away?

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"The Grimmory"
(Scribbleman)

No need to worry.

There's no one that gives a damn about you here.  

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Here, you might as well be invisible...

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"The Other Side"

"Embracing Childhood" will have you peering through windows that don't reflect your reality while seeing "The Other Side"

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and reflecting on your own sense of self in the mirror of "Lies".

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"The Time it Takes to Heal"

But don't worry,

 

you'll be fine.

Exhibition Proposal

Images and videos shown are not completed works, and are for concept purposes only

"Embracing Childhood"

"Embracing Childhood"

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Our Story Continues:

...You know it's raining, but on "The Other Side" of the window, just beyond reach, the world looks like sunshiny perfection, but that side doesn't know you exist.  The place smells of stale beer and overflowing ashtrays, and a record player in the corner eternally spins with the static-y vinal ffft, ffft, ffft of music's solemn demise.

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"The Other Side" - three window pane triptych {shown disassembled}

"Morning Serenade" - reclaimed wine box, 3D printed elements - interactive

"Embracing Childhood", like real childhood, is a full-sensory experience, using visual, written and sound arts, interactive motion and even scent to navigate viewers through a life-sized child's tale of growing & discovering the world through the broken lens of disfunction, abuse, neglect and poverty.  

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The multi-disciplinary artworks in this expansive exhibition explore original trauma and it's current manifestations, yet is buoyed by concepts of continued amelioration.

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"Dream Home" - paper - backdrop 'screen' for projected imagery

Arraigned as a generic apartment, visitors are guided through a series of vignettes featuring groupings of artworks with shared themes, each examining the origins and impacts of a dysfunctional upbringing.  Areas such as, "The Lies We're Told" and "Addiction and Subtraction" decorate the domicile liberally in a discomforting feng shui, colored with red flags, white lies and dark deeds.

 

While this exhibit keenly displays gruff topics and sensitive subjects, it's stark, prickly shadows and cold, sharp textures never-the-less result in a positive presentation worthy of reflection.

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Intimate yet revealing, even the most private of experiences become relatable, and aims to evoke a sense of empathy, regardless of background or personal experience.

"The Way Back Machine"

hand  carved genuine ostrich eggshell, copper-plated

We can't turn back time, but we can make a better future by healing the past, right here, right now.

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"The healing of ourselves is the healing of the whole nation." 

-  Thich Nhat Hahn

  • "Addiction & Subtraction"

  • "Genetic Neglect"

    • "Breath of Newt"​

    • "Skin of Baby Mole"

    • "Parakeet Val(or?)"

    • "Cactus Juice"

    • "The Beauty of Plants"

  • "Don't Label Me"

  • "Buds & Butts"

  • "Message in a Bottle"

  • "Broken Glass & Tears - a Prosaic Mosaic"

  • "Sewer Subway"

  • "The Short Cut"

  • "Self Portrait"

  • "Sleepless"

  • "Go Play!"

  • "Kids in the Hall"

  • "Remembering Childhood"

  • "The Grimmory (Scribbleman)"

  • "No Places Like Home"

  • "The Other Side (Limerence)"

  • "The Spitting Image"

  • "Step In"

  • "Scatterbugs"

  • "Morning Serenade"

  • "The Remodeler"

  • "Of Fires and Thieves"

    • "Heat Exchange"​

    • "Inventing"

    • "Wall of Fame"

    • "Play Ball"

  • "Each Door a Story"

  • "Color Your World"

  • "Hobo Code"

  • "Layers"

  • "Succumb"

  • ​​"The Lies We're Told"

  • "Nothin' but Trash"

  • "The Chandelure" 

  • "(Use) The Tools You Have"

  • "The Time it Takes to Heal"

  • "Mirror of Lies"

  • "The Poisons We're Fed"

    • “Baby Bottle Madness” (merc.)

    • “Face the Mosquitoes” (ddt)

    • “Keep Fuzzy Wuzzy Naked!”

    • “Super. Fantastic. Elastic Bubbles”

    • “Red m&ms & Candy Cigs”

    • “(Lead) Paint Chips (& Dip)”

    • "Trashed"

  • DIY Sculpture Station

  • "Spin Cycle Trimester"

  • "Adverse Climb"

  • "Deep Dive Slide"

The Collection: (click here to request full curator breakdown)

In keeping with the artist's idea of 'reclaiming' herself, most pieces are created with at least one reclaimed element integral to it's development.

Listed below are some completed works, some in-production, and a couple pipe-dreams.

Whether through sculpture, photography, traditional media, written word or computer graphics, the story keeps telling itself, and I'll keep listening, in hopes of one day walking through the whole tale with you.

COMPLETED PIECES:

  • "Remembering Childhood"

  • "The Grimmory (Scribbleman)"

  • "The Other Side"

  • "Step In"

  • "(Use) The Tools You Have"

  • "The Time it Takes to Heal"

  • "Don't Label Me"

  • "The Art on Your Walls"

  • "The Books on Your Shelf"

  • "Buds & Butts"

  • "The Spitting Image"

  • "Morning Serenade"

  • "The Remodeler"

  • "Play Ball"

  • "Color Your World"

  • "Hobo Code"

  • "Addiction & Subtraction"

    • "Up in Smoke"​

    • "Down the Hatch"

    • ​

  • "Portrait of Dad"

  • "Portrait of Mom"

  • "Portrait of the Portrait Taker"

  • "Sleepless"

  • "The Poisons We're Fed"

    • “Baby Bottle Madness” (merc.)

    • “Face the Mosquitoes” (ddt)

    • “Keep Fuzzy Wuzzy Naked!”

    • “Super. Fantastic. Elastic Bubbles”

    • “Red m&ms & Candy Cigs”

    • “(Lead) Paint Chips (& Dip)”

    • "Trashed"

IN PRODUCTION:​

  • "Message in a Bottle"

  • "The Chandelure" 

  • "Self Portrait:  Then"

  • "Self Portrait:  Now"

  • "Broken Glass & Tears - a Prosaic Mosaic"

  • "The Short Cut"

  • "Go Play!"

  • "Kids in the Hall"

  • "Of Fires and Thieves"

    • "Heat Exchange"​

    • "Inventing"

    • "Wall of Fame"

  • "Genetic Neglect"

    • "Breath of Newt"​

    • "Skin of Baby Mole"

    • "Parakeet Val(or?)"

    • "Cactus Juice"

    • "The Beauty of Plants"

SOME DAY:

  • "Burning Bridges"

  • "Layers"

  • "Succumb"

  • "Scatterbugs"

  • "No Places Like Home"

  • ​​"The Lies We're Told"

  • "Nothin' but Trash"

  • "Mirror of Lies"

  • "Each Door a Story"

  • "Spin Cycle Trimester"

  • "Adverse Climb"

  • "Deep Dive Slide"

  • "Each Door a Story"

"Embracing Childhood" is a journey of resilience, where darkness gives way to hope, and wounds turn to wonder

"I have noticed that people are dealing too much with the negative, with what is wrong. They do not touch enough on what is not wrong—it’s the same as some psychotherapists. Why not try the other way, to look into the patient and to see positive things, to just touch those things and make them bloom?"  --  Thich Nhat Hanh

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