The Mending Project - a solo exhibition by Shauna Martin

Rooted in the belief that creative practice can support emotional healing, The Mending Project positions art as both reflection and a tool. Join us for the Opening Reception of "The Mending Project," a solo art exhibition by Shauna Martin. Artist Statement Loss rearranges the landscape of who we are. In this series, trees serve as vessels for exploring grief, memories, and the quiet work of transition. Each piece begins as a photograph fused to wood through layers of encaustic wax. Portions of the images are intentionally left incomplete, their missing forms standing in to reflect the absence left by loss. Within these spaces, materials associated with repair and reconnection - sewing patterns, thread, tape, nails, and hinges - are embedded into the surface. Each carries a distinct language of mending: binding, fastening, holding, and reopening. These elements do not replace what is gone, but instead make visible the ongoing, imperfect process of piecing together a life that continues forward after loss. The work emphasizes transparency in healing. Rather than concealing damage, each piece reveals the cracks, fractures, and points of repair - elevating them as integral and even beautiful aspects of the whole. In doing so, the work creates space for viewers to recognize their own experiences of grief, transition, and resilience. A restrained palette of black, white, and ochre allows texture and material presence to speak, reinforcing the tactile, meditative nature of the process. Rooted in the belief that creative practice can support emotional healing, The Mending Project positions art as both reflection and a tool. The work invites engagement not only as visual experience, but as a catalyst for dialogue around loss, recovery, and personal transformation. It offers a framework through which individuals and communities can consider how brokenness is not an endpoint, but part of an ongoing process of reconstruction through transition.