Jillian Vaccaro
My art is an exploration of my long-term memory with a focus on familial relationships. Each work functions as an emotional response to my past, fabricated to depict the fragility and loss that permeates the act of recollecting. Before I begin a new work, I situate my mind in a previous time. I bring myself to this place through writing, reminiscing with loved ones, navigating through souvenirs and familial archives, and revisiting significant environments from childhood and my adult life. When I arrive in the past mentally, I respond with my materials intuitively.
The use of personal souvenirs are woven into my practice as they function as objects of remembrance and assist my recollections. I share intimate parts of my personal history so that others may feel connected through a similar sense of vulnerability, appreciation, loss, and reflection in their own life.