Letters Home // This analog collage collection started in my kitchen. It’s true! One night, I was loading the dishwasher after we finished our meal. Rag thrown over my shoulder, singing along to the background music and lining plates one by one.

I had asked Alexa to play classic rock like I always do, and Cat Stevens happened to shuffle on. It was a familiar song, but one I hadn’t heard in a really long time.

I remember getting a Cat Stevens CD for my dad for Christmas one year and we played it over and over. As I stood there swaying to Father and Son, I began to cry. It reminded me of home and in that moment, home felt so far away.

In 2006 I packed my little red Grand Am with all of my belongings. With excitement, I took off down our long dirt driveway and the woods of northern Minnesota disappeared slowly in my review mirror. I was 18 years old and I was determined to see the world.

Now, I find myself standing in the kitchen, swaying and singing. Still 2,000 miles away from home. I dropped the dishrag, walked into my art room and closed the door. I listened to the music and let my hands shuffle the paper.

I thought of time. I thought of distance. I felt gratitude and nostalgia. In Letters Home, I explore all of it. Pieces of paper representing fragments of time. Placed together in blocks of memories — with the glue holding them down.

View, shop and collect all 7 pieces, here.

If you’re reading this, I’d like to thank you for supporting my art practice! Whether you like, comment, share or collect my work. It means the world to me!

- Elyse’