The centerpiece of this exhibition is entitled 365 Mementos. I conceived of creating this piece after living in San Diego, CA for eight years. It occurred to me that time has a tendency to proceed imperceptibly; with minimal seasonal change as one year melts into the next. Thus I began this piece as a means of documenting my experiences throughout the year 2002.
I wanted to attempt to collect and record the passage of time so I created a miniature in response to my experiences each day for an entire year. Each month has a distinct surface and medium (for example November is parchment and ink). I used one sheet of my chosen surface and divided it into the appropriate number of days, allowing each month to come from a single whole. At year's end I separated each month into four groups at random. Memories tend to come in random non-chronological form, so I made no attempt to arrange the days into an orderly progression.
The four groups of miniatures are presented on two wall hangings and two sculptures. I chose the quilt form as an homage to my family history. My paternal grandmother was a wonderful quilter as is my mother. It is at the center of quilting to record and communicate experiences or stories through the use of symbols and icons, and it is with this aspect that my work holds in common. Ultimately, as I created these assemblages, I kept in mind some of the standard divisions of time: four seasons, four weeks in a month, and seven days per week.
