Setting out to do this project I was thinking of my mom and when I think of my mom I think of waterlillies. My mom went to camp on Algonquin Park and established a love for nature and in particular water Lillies.
The water Lilie’s have become synonymous with a sense of home, safety and hapiness in our family vocabulary . Having cancer in my family history as many people do there are screenings that you have to have and often the waiting and the uncertainty of testing can be very stressful. The complexity of emotions that are stirred up can be intense. Creating these art pieces is something I did before a recent screening and it was very therapeutic.
The colours and imagery in the collages are soothing to me and take me to places where I am happy . The water Lilie’s are collages of photographs I took from a botanical garden in São Miguel Island and water colour painting I made and cut up.
My process is very tactile and often messy. I am working with photocopied photographs, painted pieces really all materials I have on hand.
My mom often used themes of water and flowers in her artwork. She used her art and her cooking as a communication tool with people and also a way to carve out a sacred space for herself amongst events and circumstances she couldn’t control.
My mom died of pancreatic cancer, we scattered her ashes among the Lillie’s in Algonquin Park .
I