Speaking of Home gallery assignment
"Speaking of Home" is a project by Nancy Ann Coyne. In this exhibit, there were 23 photographs blown up, printed on transparent cloth, and poster on the windows of the IDS/Macy's skyway over Nicolett Ave, between 7th and 8th streets. There were signs hanging above the pictures with the word "home" written in different languages.
The main theme of the exhibition was "home". Each of the pictures had a message attatched to them, The individual speaking of how they came to find a home in Minnesota after moving here from foriegn countries. The message I got from a lot of the individual's statements was that "home is where your loved ones are, and you can create home anywhere."
One specific work that caught my eye was the photo and words of Shakun Maheshwari from Bhilwara, India. I enjoyed this particular photo of Shakun, photographed at her wedding in India (seven years prior to moving to Minnesota) because it shows her with her two siblings, painting a clear picture of "family". Her plaque talks about her MN- born children initially feeling uncomfortable about their mother wearing native Indian dress in the setting of the United States, but as they grew, they learned to be proud of their origins. I really enjoyed the last sentence of her plaque: "without my family, I couldn't call a place home".
I would reccoment this exhibition to a friend. It makes you reflect on your home and what makes it so. this gallery prompted me to think about the community at the U and how I have adopted it as my family and home.