In June of 2021 I was offered the opportunity to pilot a new residency program at the Zymoglyphic Museum in Portland, OR where I live. This was my first dive back into making since the pandemic began. As a resident, I would use the materials found onsite, rather than my own catalogue of materials. Someone else’s found, collected, and reclaimed materials would be my palette.

In June, a return to normalcy seemed imminent, so I had been thinking about a way out of this pandemic, of what it might look like on the other side, and how I (we) could even get there alone– with all of the grief of lives lost, jobs lost, experiences lost, missing human connections, livelihoods on hold, and endless unknowns.

I had recently celebrated the ten-year anniversary of my mother’s passing as well. This was heavy on my heart; a personal weight I was carrying on top the collective weight(s) of this time.

The figures that emerged from my study; relating sticks and lichen to seed pods, sea kelp, feathers, and bones, are female archetypes to “mother” myself back to knowing and being in the world. They are talismans for the grief and longing, birth/rebirth, connection, wisdom, and guidance for which I needed support. They are symbolic healers for all of those in need of renewal in this time.