Birth and Loss Ritual Healing Installation
This installation is based on my animated short film, Birth that explores childbirth and pregnancy loss. In multiple births, the joy of a healthy child juxtaposed with the loss of a child in utero are emotionally complex to navigate. In my own experience my loss went undiscussed for many years. There was no forum to grieve, no ritual to engage in and no acknowledgment of the experience in our culture. I created this space to honor and memorialize that loss and the child that did not emerge. I have come to realize that the imagery of a baby on a butterfly coming out in my artwork were my suppressed need to grieve this loss. The sculpture is placed emerging and flying on butterfly wings out of the uterus. My subconscious emerging through my artwork when I was not able to address it consciously. I adorn the work with beads, rhinestones, glitter and charms symbolic of their importance, and spiritual significance, referencing ritual objects in Judaism. Many women suffer alone, and society often communicates that this loss is different and undeserving of support, acknowledgment, or more formal rituals and traditions. Life cycle events have rituals and traditions attached to them to mark the experience. This installation seeks to be a place of ritual healing, a forum for one’s emotions, a place for communal support. Without rituals and an open dialogue many women are left feeling abandoned or even chastised without the structure and support needed to heal. My experience making this work has been a physical vehicle to “touch” this child, sculpting and adorning its form, allowing me to hold and caress it, and taking time to engage with the loss. The act of creating an installation has mirrored the act of preparing a space in your home for a new child, making a space for this being in your life. I hope that people viewing and engaging with the work will find healing for their own experiences. A ritual sharing book for visitors is available to express their feelings through visual language or text-based language that will remain for visitors to read and engage with.