Love Letters

 

This post is about the beautiful catalogue for the exhibition In the Middle of the World, featuring the hand stitched work of Canadian artists Penny Berens and Judith E Martin, with a scholarly essay by Miranda Bouchard, curator.   All images are from the catalogue, all text is from the final paragraphs of Miranda's essay. 

As testimonials to their processes, experiences, labours, and love, the works of Berens and Martin communicate uniquely and bravely about what it is to be human and alive in this world.

During a talk delivered in March 2020, Martin expressed,  "I believe that the results of our work will be felt and understood by new generations, some not yet born.  They will feel the love held in our stitches.  All of us, all of you, who make hand-made objects, have this belief.

We believe that our work will be understood and appreciated in the future.  In this way, our work is life-affirming and full of hope."  The works are love letters to people and planet that help us look simultaneously inwards at ourselves and to reflect outwards at and onto the world.

For years, the artists have pressed beyond the limits, expectations, and norms they've been confronted with to make their marks and do their work.  Throughout the development of In The Middle of the World, they've courageously stretched, testing the frontiers of their creative practices to make and share, keeping their notions of truth in sight.

The slow nurturance of the work reflects the value in moving ever onwards, in spite of time and fear, at an intuitive pace that privileges real relationships.  

These works invite us to consider the importance of caring for the Earth as lovingly and attentively as we care for our bodies, and of sharing stories and skills so they can be cherished now and into the future.

They dare us to be courageously vulnerable amidst all the mending that needs doing in the world.

Penny Berens and Judy Martin offer poignant reminders that creation is ongoing and never static, as are the living processes of relating to our true selves, to each other, and the worlds we find ourselves in as time continues to pass. 

This work is never - nor should it ever - be done.

The artists and curator acknowledge the support of the Ontario Arts Council during the long haul of preparing the exhibition and this publication.  

The complete catalogue can be viewed as a PDF, click here.  The soft cover book is 125 pages and is available for purchase.  Click here for more information.