Maddie Smith- Poem and analysis of materials

This poem explores the therapeutic concept of "Boxing it". Putting painful memories away and choosing not to deal with them in the present time.

This poem has become the inspiration for my installation.

 

She wove roses around it

This box is made up of pieces of driftwood,

A broken pallet,
Scattered in sand,

It is ragged and worn,
Like the years it tore her, the years it drove her to drink.

This box is made up of pieces of driftwood ,
Containing a dress of regrets.
A scar that is healing with each breath of the hour ,
Weighted words spoken on dark, smoky nights.

It once was a wound that she wore on her shoulder,
That ouzed out to people that she tried to love.

She wove roses around it,
And wrapped it in ribbons,
And left it to sit by the shore, by the sea.


Analysis of materials-

Roses- symbol of love. Dying roses (roses will be wove around my installation and left to decompose) time passing, death, but comfort in death- the end of suffering, healing.

Sand- time passing, grains of sand passing through an hour glass, gritty, sometimes soft.

Driftwood, broken pallets- aged, weathered, carrying something with you for a long time.

Ribbons- White? (Still undecided on colour) bandages, healing, extra protection.

This installation overall explores an attempt to create beauty out of something painful, but also to protect it, keep it safe.

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