Above, acrylic of daughter April by her older sister Grace - they were both in high school at the time.
This post is about a corner of my upstairs home studio that has been important to my process for quite a while - at least 10 years.
It's an additive collage of family photographs that have come into my possession over time. I've pinned the photos to the wall as I've received them. They tell my story to me.
The top photo in the above group was in my father's bedroom in Kingston - he had printed it himself on one of his large digital printers. All of us are there - Jay, April, me, Grace, Oona and Ned - That photo is at least a dozen years old.
The post card above left is from
Newgrange in Ireland, the embroidery below is something I removed from one of my pieces, the portrait is a photo Ned took because we needed one of me stitching...can't remember exactly why. It's from 2009.
Photos of my siblings, my parents, Ned's parents and several of each child are up on this wall. In the upper left photo is our oldest grandchild Everett with his dad and mom..he's 2 in the photo....now he's 8.
Here is Jack, crawling across his Alaskan kitchen door threshold from the deck. 8 months in the photo, he's five years now.
above, the newest grandchild, Aili - very precious.
Things I've read go up on this wall. That photo is of me age 50.
Now I have to take this life collage down because Ned has been doing some repairs and the wall needs to be painted. Thought I'd document it first.
13 comments:
What a lovely family collage. Loose photos are becoming a rarity in my family. I now get photo books.
this just made me cry.
such a beautiful documentation of a life being lived.
when i was a kid , there was a smoosh on the ceiling above my brother's bed where someone had killed a spider.
for some reason, it was comforting to my brother to rest his eyes on that spot. i don't know if it had anything to do with that particular little life or if it was just a spot on the ceiling.
when my mother had the house painted she asked the painters to go around that spot. i will always love that she did that.
but they forgot.
they painted over it.
no going back.
no conclusion here.
just a story that seems to connect a bit to yours.
Thank you. A very tender post...
p.s.
gorgeous portrait.
Wonderful and intimate. Something here says a life being lived, not how. One scrap, one day, one year and one stitch at a time. Love looking.
I don't know why, but family pictures sometimes hurt me. I have to think about it... I have a good relationship with them, but maybe not with the past...
Nevertheless, with the arriving of new members, my adorable nephews, I am slowly loving them again and they are coming one by one to a shelve in my studio.
Such a beautiful family and a life well lived. Thank you for sharing this Judy.
I wish I had a wall to display like this ... most of my 'fibre' family have them and I love to read what they treasure. Thanks for sharing yours ;)
I collect lots of photos, cards, and art from friends and family that go into small albums ... must bring them out to 'read' more often !
Judy,
This was lovely to see and to feel that we have a tiny connection. I met Everett when he and Pelle were both 2, Astrid now goes to school with Jack. Bittersweet to see these images knowing that Oona will soon leave Alaska, but I am happy for her and for you knowing that your family will be closer.
Thanks for sharing,
XO Amy
You are so blessed.........
Yes, I am very blessed.
I am very lucky.
And yes, Oona and family are moving to Ontario in the spring.
And this collage has been taken down, painting has begun.
Thanks for your generous comments
x
Love all the family photos!
I love these random assemblages of thoughts, photos, cards … I have one under threat of removal in our kitchen. I will photograph! Another, that I am about to sift through,from a past studio space, is carefully disassembled, a stow away in a box.
Thanks for sharing yours.
Post a Comment