Rebecca Reeves’ new exhibition, Garden of Grief, is currently on view at our Little Free Library gallery in North Portland. Every petal and leaf of each “flower” was painstakingly hand-beaded by Rebecca in the tradition of her great grandmother, representing dozens of hours of work. Rebecca is donating a portion of all art sales to the American Cancer Society in support of their mission to save lives, celebrate lives, and lead the fight for a world without cancer, in memory of her father. Thank you to everyone who adopted Rebecca’s art—the show is completely sold out! “Garden of Grief I” by Rebecca ReevesPorcelain doll head, glass beads, wire, antique milk glass jar. H5.5” x D5.5” x W7.5” SOLD “Garden of Grief I” by Rebecca Reeves “Garden of Grief II” by Rebecca ReevesPorcelain doll head, glass beads, wire, antique milk glass jar. H5.25” x D5” x W7” SOLD “Garden of Grief II” by Rebecca Reeves “Garden of Grief III” by Rebecca ReevesPorcelain doll head, glass beads, wire, antique milk glass jar. H5.25” x D6” x W7.5” SOLD “Garden of Grief III” by Rebecca Reeves
When my mother died she left behind a lifetime’s worth of possessions. I kept what I could fit into a couple of suitcases and boxes; I felt that if I could somehow fit these pieces of her together in just the right way, I could somehow become closer to her by gaining a better understanding of who she was. But it’s been three years, and she’s still a mystery to me.
I made a bouquet of things my mother left behind; things that were precious to her before she lost her past to Alzheimer’s disease. Each “flower” consists of a couple of her paintbrushes, a floral watercolor sketch (painted when she was in high school in Argentina), a vintage photo (taken in Hong Kong, Buenos Aires, or Colorado), and unanswered questions. I’ll be giving these away on Friday at our opening celebration for Garden of Grief, Rebecca Reeves’ new installation in our Little Free Library gallery. On Friday, May 25 we’ll be celebrating the opening of Garden of Grief, Rebecca Reeves’ new installation in our Little Free Library Gallery. Her ongoing themes of loss and mourning—intertwined with the compulsion to protect the relics left behind by the dead—resonate with me on a deeply personal level, and it’s such an honor to be hosting her work in our tiny gallery.
Rebecca will be here in person to talk about her work, plus we’ll have two additional guests for a special “Porch Salon” conversation about grief as it relates to the themes of Rebecca’s art: Megan Devine, author of It’s OK That You’re Not OK: Meeting Grief and Loss in a Culture that Doesn’t Understand and Coleman Stevenson, creator of the Dark Exact Tarot and author of Breakfast: 43 Poems. Megan will be talking about the importance of sharing our stories of loss, and Coleman will be reading a poem inspired by Rebecca’s work. We hope you’ll join us from 7-9pm! Our Little Free Library Gallery may be found near 600 N. Mason St. in Portland, Oregon. |
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