Floating Memory . . .

As we enter a new millennium, we pause to reflect upon not only our personal lives, but also upon the place of our culture during such a monumental moment. How do we, both as individuals and as a community, want to be remembered? And of the things that we do and make, what contains the cultural memory? Is it carried forth by history books; does it reside within the artifacts left behind by each culture and its people; or is it retained in our unconscious selves?

In this show I explore four areas of memory: personal; ancestral; cultural; and mythic. I am drawn to the idea of collective memory through re-membered images and events used to help define ourselves, our families and our community. In this sense, my pieces embody the ethereal aspects of memory, both in the process of their making, and then in their viewing. For example, the boats I have created are containers for our cultural memory. They embody layers of images that are representative of specific aspects of our culture, both past and present, including elements that portray how we envision our world. I feel that by remembering the past, we are able to preserve both the events that occurred and the emotional experiences of the events as well. In addition, recalling our collective and shared past gives context and sense of place to the present; this re-imaging then allows for the potential of the future.

I believe the sense of place created in this installation, "Floating Memory," is a key form in linking the actual and the imagined. It is a place to explore the prophetic and opportune events of the unfolding story of memory.