Catherine Garbinsky On Legacy And Connection
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| By Sybrand Schaafsma |
While curating this feature with Catherine, we spoke often about grief and legacy, and the feeling of connection we so often get from our art. Catherine comes from a very creative family and here she shares art from some of the family members who’ve been influential in her life, and her thoughts on how creativity can anchor us.
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| By Lira Schaafsma |
“I am not a visual artist, but multiple members of my immediate family were/are.”
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| By Lucian Schaafsma |
“Lucian is the uncle mentioned in my poem “Song of the Solstice.” He was also a poet.”
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| By Sybrand Schaafsma |
“We can safely explore different parts of ourselves through our writing, even the dark and hidden parts — our shadow selves. There is room to be brave, to say things we may be scared to utter aloud.”
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| By Jan Schaafsma |
“Jan Schaafsma (my great grandfather) is the only relative here who I didn’t know personally, but I knew him through his art and from stories.”
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| By Lira Schaafsma |
“Grief has so many different faces. It can be mournful and sad and all consuming. The pain can be quite acute. Another part of grief, though, is remembrance — and gratitude. In this sense my work is invoking spirits of those I love, communing with them, and uncovering the ways in which they live on in me. There is joy in this — a profound sense of joy.”