How Art Heals-WEB

29 13. Melody Money WWW.MELODYMONEY.COM COLORADO, USA For Mama’s Got the Blues , Melody was inspired by her meditation on aging. “I had an unexpected event that catalyzed a change in my perspective. I wanted this piece to convey the whole of a life, the many days of joy and sorrow. “The piece has twenty-four rows across, representing the hours in each day, and fifty-two rows from top to bottom for the number of weeks in a year. There is an overall sunshine and shadow pattern throughout the whole piece. I wanted the improvised and frayed patchwork to represent how a life is built, day by day. “Forget-me-not f lowers represent those people gone but not forgotten; the stars stand for wishing; the dichroic film, for bright, celebratory days; along with daisy buttons that stand for happy summer days. Stones for pockets are for those dark days when all you can do is wonder. The pleated silk represents rivers and how each life f lows on. Some areas are filled in to make a whole as we all build our lives, raw edges and all.” I didn’t want to acknowledge the depth of some of my sorrows. I tend to focus on the good, so this piece, with its darker aspects, was hard for me. I stopped and started several times, which is not my usual way. I didn’t realize until completion how caught up I was. I felt relieved to f inish it.