2 Rivers Art Gallery Curio

I am currently working on one of my living boxes (curio) that I am donating to the two rivers art gallery. They are having a Halloween event and I am struggling a bit with the design of the box. I have always tried to avoid the perception of my boxes being a Halloween/gothic prop but more of conversation piece that helps people discuss death in a healthy, proactive way. It also doesn't help that this is a high end event for people outside of my income bracket.

I spent several hours with the Communications director (she came out to the cabin) and she obviously gets the concept, however displaying something without being able to tell the Narrative is always challenging. The background for the box is a dead garden so I was thinking of building the curio around a small tree sapling and have the branches intertwined with the shelves (whether or not this is do-able or attractive is another matter)

MCC fall fair curio

Here is the curio I donated to the fall fair. It was my clasic curio taper and I placed a plywood back since it would be used as furniture.

Participatory Grief

Apparently this phrase does not yet exist. I think it emphasizes that in order to work through grief it is important to engage and not get caught being passive. That is not to say that there are periods of time where exaustion sets in. I love this picture of my extended family finishing grandma's box.

I have been thinking about how this whole process started recently. I am constantly reminded what a blessing it was to build my grandmothers box. For more information please see http://www.grandmathiessenmemory.blogspot.com/. I think that I will start on that book I have been promising for the last couple of years. Grandma's box will be the first chapter, then I could include a chapter on owen, and a few other families that I have interacted with the past year.

Home show spring 2010

Artist box