Date of Award
2022
Degree Type
Restricted Access Thesis
Document Type
Master Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Fine Arts (MFA)
Department
English and Theatre
First Advisor
Young Smith
Department Affiliation
English
Second Advisor
Julie Hensley
Department Affiliation
English
Third Advisor
R. Dean Johnson
Department Affiliation
English
Abstract
The Touching Rooms are a place of encounter between the living and the dead. We traverse the stages of grief through memory, dreams and magical realism, through language and music. In this work, I explore how paying attention, the art of seeing and describing, helps us through deep loss. Our daily rituals and everyday goodbyes are practice for the larger departures from our lives. In the series "The Touching Rooms," there is a mysterious town in Denmark where we may meet our dead beloveds. In a café of many dark rooms, objects and art, books and conversations, spark memory and carve portals for connection and healing. There is no real closure, we simply grow new chambers in the heart to carry grief with us in meaningful ways.
Copyright
Copyright 2022 Kimberly Mattheussens
Recommended Citation
Mattheussens, Kimberly, "The Touching Rooms" (2022). Online Theses and Dissertations. 741.
https://encompass.eku.edu/etd/741
