Community-Based Projects
Over the past three years, I have worked with three communities: Bay City, Michigan; Monroe, Wisconsin; and Shorewood Hills, Wisconsin. Each project invites residents to pause, reflect, and rediscover. It starts with a simple but powerful idea. People dig out family photo albums, pull old boxes from closets, and revisit stories passed down through generations. These personal moments are then interpreted through my printmaking practice, layering history with texture, color, and composition to create artwork that feels both timeless and contemporary.
Each project culminated in a public exhibition that celebrated local heritage while building connections across generations. These shows became signature community events, drawing record attendance, local media coverage, and wide civic engagement.
Bay City, Michigan — March 2022
Held at Studio 23, this exhibition gathered over 1,000 submissions and distilled them into 30 pieces that reflected the city’s waterfront and industrial history. It became one of the gallery’s most attended shows of the year and sparked community-wide conversations on history and renewal.
Monroe, Wisconsin — 2023
In Monroe, the project centered on rural life and Swiss-American culture, culminating in 40 finished works shown at the Monroe Arts Center. The exhibition broke attendance records, was featured in multiple local media outlets, and became a celebrated gathering point for the community.
Shorewood Hills, Wisconsin — 2024
Focusing on neighborhood identity and architectural history, this exhibition featured 25 works drawn from nearly 700 submissions. It became a summer highlight, bringing together longtime residents and new families in a meaningful celebration of community.
This process of reflection invites people to slow down, reconnect with their history, and see their personal stories through a contemporary artistic lens. I am now looking for the next community to collaborate with. Might this be your community? My goal is to take this project to the next level by creating a public outdoor event where the artwork is projection mapped and animated onto a prominent building in the city, set to music. It will be an unforgettable celebration of memory, community, and place.
