Art Saves • by Susanna Gordon

Art has always been a part of my life. My twin sister, Maria, and I were fortunate to have parents who encouraged us in all our creative endeavors whether it was art, dance, creative writing or music, so we both grew up believing ourselves to be “artistic.” On weekends, my mother would drive an hour from our home in the countryside into Ottawa so my sister and I could wander throughout the National Gallery of Canada. From these little artistic excursions, Maria and I grew up comfortable in galleries and we learned that art was another way to express our ideas, feelings, and opinions.

I believe that art and the process of creating art can have a profound healing effect on one’s life. When asked for such an example in my own life, I immediately think of one particular moment.

Dia de los Muertos
When I was 21, my father died in my arms from a heart attack. I was devastated, and over the following months, functioned in a strange fog. Even after I made it through that sad time in my life, I still struggled with managing the grief. As ridiculous as it may sound, I was angry at my father for dying. I couldn’t look at his photograph and I avoided thinking of him because if I did, I would then have to deal with the sad feelings lying just under the skin. What an unfair thing to do for someone who played such an important role in my life.

One day, a good friend’s aunt told me about the Mexican festival Dia de los Muertos, or the Day of the Dead. It is annual festival celebrated in parts of Mexico on November 2nd, when families gather and celebrate the lives of their loved ones who have passed on, through music and dance, by serving the deceased’s favourite food and drink, by creating artwork such as dancing skeletons, and by displaying photographs of the deceased on handmade altars called ofrendas. Stories about the deceased are told and the deceased are remembered.

When I learned of the Day of the Dead festival in Mexico, I was fascinated. Remembering and celebrating a loved one’s life was a much healthier way of dealing with the death of a loved one than what I had experienced in my Protestant upbringing. It is said that on November 2nd, the deceased are allowed to visit the living and take part in the celebrations. I imagined spirits returning to the people and places that they remembered and it was then that I began my Spirit photo series. I photographed friends with skulls painted on their faces in various places throughout Toronto.

I wrote about Dia de los Muertos on my blog and included a sketch from the Spirit series within the blog post. The response was positive and I received several emails from blog readers who told me that they had also created altars honoring their loved ones who had passed on. Stephanie Hilvitz, a blogger friend (rodrigvitzstyle.typepad.com), invited me to cohost a Dia de los Muertos blogging event with her the following year. We called it “Dia de Bloglandia.” I decided to make a Dia de los Muertos altar in honor of my father. I made papel picado banners - illustrations cut out of brightly colored tissue paper – and skeletons out of felt, wire, and painted papier mâché. I bought my father’s favorite treats – French mints and dark chocolate – and scattered them along with his Canadian military buttons and badges around a little altar in my dining room. On the top of the altar, I placed a photograph of my father.

It was amazing how many bloggers participated in Dia de Bloglandia. Everyone posted photographs of their loved ones and the altars they had built for them. There were figures of dancing skeletons and decorated sugar skulls and recipes for traditional Dia de los Muertos food. Most important though were the stories told about the dead; some of them were funny, some of them were sad, but all of them were full of love.

Winged Messengers
Dia de los Muertos is not the only life-changing even that has occurred to me because of art. Years ago, due to work, my husband and I found ourselves living apart in two different countries - Canada and the United States - for several months. It wasn’t easy living apart and there were many tearful goodbyes over the phone. We relied on emails, letters, and late night phone conversations to connect with one another. Sometimes, instead of writing letters, I would tuck a little drawing into the envelope. One such drawing was of my husband sleeping in a bed with winged envelopes flying through the open window and landing on his pillow.

Several years later, I came across that drawing and thought that it would be interesting to photograph those winged envelopes flying throughout a field and in a city so I created a little flock and photographed them in the long grass in a nearby field. When I posted the images on my blog, I received a positive response from my readers. I made another little flock and photographed them in New York. I posted those photographs on my blog and again, received a positive response from my readers.

Shortly thereafter, I read a post written by the lovely Maddie of persistingstars.com whose son’s teacher, Catherine Hanna, asked her students to write out something positive and to carry it around in their pockets at school. The students then wrote affirmations onto slips of paper and left them in public places for strangers to find. What a great lesson to students! What a great idea for anyone! I thought perhaps I could do the same with my winged envelopes. So I wrote kind messages on the front of the envelopes and began to leave them in public places.

At first, it was just me putting up the winged pieces in public places – by a phone on a train platform, on a fire hydrant near Times Square, on a billboard surrounding a construction site in downtown Manhattan. I felt self-conscious taping a winged messenger in a public space although I also felt a little thrill whenever someone stopped to take a closer look at what I was doing. It’s liberating to leave a piece of artwork somewhere for a stranger to find and to keep … for free … and to walk away from it.

After I posted those photographs, my readers responded enthusiastically and several requested that I mail them a pair for their own communities. That’s when my personal project became collaboration with my blog readers. It’s become a better project since then.

The name “Winged Messengers” came from my friend, the artist Karen Cole of karencole.blogspot.com, who was one of the first supporters of the project.

To learn more about Susanna Gordon, visit susannassketchbook.typepad.com.

Comments

[somepinkflowers]

well told, susanna!
and look at you up there
~~wearing wings~~

:-)

personally
i love how many of your art projects
reach out to others,
tenderly touching them,
inviting them,
including them...

how like you, missy!

[Elizabeth]

Susanna
This is such a lovely, thoughtful essay both about you but all your family especially your father.
And also your extended 'blog family' all the Blogstockers and all the others out there doing creative and exciting things!
Bravo! Way to go.I'm thrilled for you

[stephanie]

yes Susanna,
I think it's a marvelous gift you have to make your artist vision touch and inspire so many others.

beautiful essay my friend!!
x..x

[Lorelei]

Thank you for sharing your story, Susanna. I'm realizing I haven't grieved for my mother - life has got in the way. I'm going to build her an altar this year to honor her. We're moving to my hometown in two weeks and the tears may start again. I'd like to receive some of your winged messengers to place about town.

[karen cole]

What a beautiful photo of a very beautiful person.

You are so versatile artistically.

I am honored to be a part of this article. I have so much respect for you, Stephanie, Maddie and Jenny. What a great get together that would be.

Congrats on this article and all of your accomplishments.

-Karen

[margie]

like you are in my apartment, telling me these stories.

[rochambeau]

Thank you Jenny, for featuring Susanna Gordan today. She is a beautiful soul and a great artist. I know her experience will resonate with and inspire others.

Susanna is a special friend in many ways and if not for her I wouldn't have a blog. She literally came to my house and set it up for me!! So you see, she changed my life!

Constance

[Moe]

Oh my goodness. I had no idea that your dad died in your arms. I want to give you a big long hug right now.

Anyway, yes, I agree with all the rest. Susanna is an amazing person and artist. Good move on your part for making her guest curator.

[Relyn]

Susanna,

What a gift you are to so many of us.

[Kath]

So lovely to see you honored here.

[anne]

Susanna- I finally made it over to read this; so beautiful.......I love seeing all the things you do on your blog- and now I know how the two projects came about - your winged messengers I think were what brought me to your blog in the first place
thank you for sharing .......

[Christina]

i remember the day i fell in love with Susanna's work. i was so shy to leave a comment on her blog. so glad i did. today i am honored to call her friend.

i love you susanna! thank you for sharing your stories and your winged messengers, both help me to fly.
XO

[maddie]

Susanna ! I think YOU are a winged messenger

a beautiful true voice ringing out love and soul needed
affirmations in this world

one day I imagine they will all fly home to you and alight on your roof all pleased with themselves:)

xoxo

madelyn