Ruth

This story is mine.

Ever since I was little I have been going “junking”. This is what my mom would call it when she’d pack me and my younger brother up in the car, at dawn, with our pillows & blankets to go hunt for treasures at some obscure converted school house, deserted barn, small town store or antique show. We’d spend hours wandering aisles of old things that positively radiated mystery and intrigue. What was that, who owned it, what did they do with it?

I collect things that remind me of another place, another time, they are pieces of my story and connections to people, places and things that only live in my memories.

I have always loved stuffed animals. I had a huge collection when I was a child, filling every shelf and free space in my room. They all had names and personalities and I took care of them as if they were my children. I wanted to make sure they felt loved and included, so one night a year I would gather them all up and pile them on my bed and slept the night curled up with them.

The first stuffed animal I remember getting was a small white reclining kitten, a gift from my sister. I remember peaking through the doorway watching her wrap the gift for me. If I close my eyes I can still see her there. I still have that kitty and treasure it as that same sister passed away when I was just 9 years old. That stuffed kitty is featured in this painting.

What I have learned from this project is that collecting is a way for us to connect to something or someone from our past. It is also a way to connect to people in the present through the shared passion to not forget what has gone before.

Oil on cradled wood panel