How Art Heals-WEB

43 “The third is Best Laid Plans [not shown] , a f loor cloth painted with room layouts of my childhood bedrooms and gridded with red stitching, repre- senting the hours I spent trying to make sense of family life and daydream- ing of my future.” I created these pieces after the death of my mother, at which time I felt free to express the complexities of my relationship with her and my upbringing. Work poured out of me—sometimes painful, but also cathartic. There is also black humor, absurdities conveyed through images and text. When I exhibit this work, I have many meaningful, compelling, and inspiring conversations with viewers about the ways we are formed, inf luenced, and cared for (or not) by our family of origin. It feels good to share experiences and discover commonalities.