Community Art

Creating art that makes space for others to join in, reflect, and find meaning together. Art invites us to enter a visual conversation that continues long after the moment of creation.

Grief and Hope Art Installation

Hope does not erase grief. It comes as a quiet presence of care, a steadying strength alongside us, right in the middle of all that has been lost. We do not grieve alone. God is with us all.

Grief and the holidays can be a challenging combination to navigate, no matter how many years have passed. I hope this art installation can bring you comfort and hope if your path holds that challenge.

This past Sunday, Marian Sunabe and I created an art installation for EvergreenLA, a faith family grieving great losses in the last year and a half. People were invited to offer a picture of who they were grieving or to write their loss on a piece of rice paper. The images and words were hung between two bamboo poles, sawn from the bamboo growing on the property. Gold paint, representing God's hope, was poured into two bowls, which Marian and I respectfully raised up under each paper, dipping the bottom and letting the gold drips fall to the paper below. With this simple, prayerful motion, we honored each loss, offering hope to companion the pain.

I was barefoot, as it felt like we were standing on holy ground. Every movement felt sacred and ceremonial. It was hard not to cry - even though the images and words faced forward, the lights made them transparent enough so we could see who we were honoring. Roz Dumesnil and my auntie were among those to whom I had the privilege of raising my bowl.

Marian and I both felt the gravity of the work last week as we prepared for Sunday and heard the stories that came with the pictures that were being sent to us. Together, our call was to create a place where this grief could be held with hope.

Artistic/creative collaboration with Marian Sunabe • Creative guidance: Jason Ashimoto, January Lim

Media: bamboo, string, paper, paint, ceramic bowls, clothespins

December 19, 2021, Evergreen LA

1:09:45 – Intro of art/context

1:18:00 – 1:18:37 Art installation

1:19:19 – 1:19:50

1:22:49

1:32:55 Close up detail

1:35:24

1:43:52 Reflection

Gratitude

Thanksgiving deserves more attention. What would the world be like if we were all more thankful? I took this wreath with me everywhere for about 6 months, asking people if they would like to help create the art by writing something they were thankful for on a ribbon and tying it on.

Media: wire, ribbons

Guests signing the art at the memorial service

Elaine

This art was created for guests at a memorial service to sign, as a remembrance gift to the family.

It began with a thoughtful, gentle conversation, finding deeper understanding of the one whose absence was being mourned. This became the inspiration for one of a kind art experience that invited participation in honoring a loved one and created a lasting memory for the family.

Though there are tears of loss in the drips as they travel down the canvas, those same drips also become the stems of the flowers going up. The tiny crosses sewn into the centers of some of the flowers capture the centrality of Christ to the dynamo of a woman whose life we gathered to celebrate. Faith was not merely an exterior trapping. It was sewn into the very fabric of how she lived and how she loved as well as in the legacy she has left in lives all over the world.

Her favorite colors were blue and beige.

Shared with permission of the family

The Border

Participatory art for an interfaith prayer service for families separated at the border. The heart is cut out of a shipping box. It was painted red then torn in half, and mounted onto a chain link fence background. The shipping box symbolized travel, and the container of family torn apart.

People were asked to consider what action they could take to help, then to write them on a red post-it and stick it in the space between the hearts, embodying taking their place in building a bridge of reconnection.

Media: shipping box, silver sharpie, foam core board, acrylic paint, post-its

Freedom

Art for a friend embarking on a whole new journey in his life, dancing freely perhaps for the very first time. Well wishes from friends line the bottom.

Media: acrylic paint, paper, kleenex, ink, glass beads

Letting Go

At an Asian American faith-based family conference, people wrote their grief and suffering on ribbons and symbolically released them by tying them onto a messy (because life is messy) cross made of 400 chopsticks. Here, the grief and suffering were both held and freed. Over the course of the week, the ribbons became more numerous, blowing in the breezes of the outdoor meeting area.

Media: chopsticks, ribbons

Laurie

(Left) Each bead represents a person in the family of a friend who had cancer. Full sets were given to each family member; individual beads went to each person committed to continue praying for her husband and children through the many years still ahead. Media: Paper, thread, ribbon.

(Right) At her memorial service, everyone was invited to write their favorite memory of her on a post-it and add it to the large mural after the service. She loved office supplies.

Media: banner paper, post-its

Shared with permission of the family

The Refuge

A wall quilt designed for The Refuge, a safe home for 5 women who were working on making better choices so they could get their children out of the foster care system. The hearts had open gaps in them when the quilt was hung in the hallway. Each time a woman made a significant step forward in her life, she could sew another stitch to further mend a heart.

Brought to life by the skills and generosity of the Westgate quilters in San Jose. 23”x47”, Media: Fabric, thread, needles

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