Artist in Residence with Sarah Cusey
>>> RESIDENCY AT YOU BELONG HERE <<<
BELONGING THROUGH PLAY
Reflections from Sarah Cusey
City Heights, August 14th-20th, 2023
>>> ARTIST IDENTITY
Working at the Monarch School full-time is rewarding but hard, and so is being a mother. I am seeking ways to center my artist identity to stay grounded. This residency allowed me to be a full-time artist for a week– to be fully present to the creative process, to give my first and best energy to making.
RISK-TAKING <<<
You Belong Here has been on my radar for a while, and I knew I didn’t have time to apply for a traditional residency. Thankfully Nic Roc, the owner, was open to and excited about my unsolicited proposal. We figured out some parameters that would work for both of us and kicked off the DIY residency.
THOUGHTS ON BELONGING
>>> DAY 1: PREPARING
I wanted the week to feel spacious, so I spent the first day outdoors and began to think intentionally about the theme of belonging. I did some digging into my family history and found myself particularly drawn to the bodies of water that sustained my ancestors before they immigrated to North America. Here are some thoughts I jotted down: I belong to the waters of the earth. They flow through me and sustain me. In gratitude, I learn to care for them. Somewhere, at some time, my ancestors lived in harmony with the waters of the earth and their rhythms. I feel at home with clouds and fog, currents and tides.
Pictured below: cliffs on Kumeyaay land, also known as Cabrillo National Monument
>>> DAY 2: ORIENTING
The team at You Belong Here went above and beyond to welcome me. My temporary studio was all set up with plenty of natural light,
and there was a whiteboard with a welcome note and important information about the space. I was given a tour and warmly introduced to community members who came in and out during the week. When the owner noticed I was spending a lot of time standing, she brought a cushy mat to protect my joints from the concrete floor. I was encouraged to hang work on the walls and generally make myself at home.
>>> DAY 3: RHYTHMS OF MAKING
I started each morning with a communal walk at a neighborhood park. Once I arrived at the studio, I made myself a beverage and read from one of my wisdom sources. I took coffee breaks in the afternoon to experience belonging with friends. At the end of each day, I tidied the space and prepped my next piece.
I made a sample piece before starting the residency, which helped me establish a process for making:
• Paint with watercolor on fabric– use black lines to trace some of the wrinkles and then embellish with color.
• Build a palette for the piece by gathering other fabric scraps, Lenore’s drawings, my drawings, photos, and thread.
• Cut shapes from drawings that follow the existing linework.
• Sew the composition onto kraft paper and add embroidery details to mimic existing marks.
• Add any additional marks and cut away excess kraft paper to form a pleasing shape.
>>> DAY 4: TAKING UP SPACE
At first I felt a bit like a tourist, but I realized it was my responsibility to take up space in order to deepen my experience of belonging. I began to use more of the space, initiate conversations, and accept other resources offered to me. One of the core beliefs that emerged as I observed and interacted was:
WE CAN TAKE UP SPACE AND RESPECT BOUNDARIES
〰️
WE CAN TAKE UP SPACE AND RESPECT BOUNDARIES 〰️
>>> DAY 5: REFLECTING
Some behaviors I identified that are present in a space that centers belonging:
Curator(s) and Existing Members:
Offer help
Make multiple invitations
Initiate warm introductions
Observe and adapt to eliminate barriers
Be clear (vision and expectations)
Newcomers:
Spread out
Make something in the space
Accept what is offered
Ask for help
Create or enter into existing rituals
Make an offering
THE WORKSHOP
>>> DAY 6: GIVING BACK
Although I relished the time this residency gave me to think deeply, my artistic process was all about play. I
wanted to offer others the opportunity to engage in multi-generational parallel play in my studio space. I have fond memories of playing or resting near my mom as she quilted and sewed throughout my youth. Mom’s sewing room was a place of co-regulation, and I find that I am still drawn to spaces where people are intentionally in proximity to one another, working on projects that bring individual joy. I set up stations (like you might see in a preschool or kindergarten class) and invited participants to take up space by making sounds, marks, shapes, and stories. Offering a gift felt like the natural and necessary culmination of the residency. Not surprisingly, contributing is the final key ingredient of belonging identified by Susie Wise in Design for Belonging.
COMING SOON IN THE STUDIO
SCULPTURES
I will continue the artistic process i developed, but I will use felt as my background material. I plan to stuff the shapes so they can be hung and viewed from multiple angles.
>>> GRATITUDE
Through reciprocity the gift is replenished. All of our flourishing is mutual,” observes Robin Wall Kimmerer in Braiding Sweetgrass. I am grateful to the community at You Belong Here, especially Nic
and Elisa, for hosting me. Thank you, Matthew, Erika, Joan, Shayla, Dan, Jeya, Deleine, Suchita, Sarah, Anna, Drew, and Z for reinforcing the belonging I already feel in our relationships. I am grateful to Angelica and her family for accepting the invitation to the workshop and taking up space with me. One day I hope Lenore will
know how grateful I am to her for lending me her vocabulary of line, shapes, and wonder. And Thank YOU for being a part of my residency by reading this reflection.
Learn More About Sarah and Her Work
Portfolio
https://www.instagram.com/sarahcusey/?hl=en