Ruth T. Segaloff
LEST WE FORGET: Stories in Collage and Mixed Media
“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”
George Santayana
For as far back as I can remember, I have collected objects of no apparent value: rusty tools, old toys, foreign coins....Then, in 2004, I “discovered” collage/mixed media and assemblage and found the perfect place for this accumulation of a life time.
My art stresses the importance of honoring our memories. By so doing, I believe art has the power to change history. I incorporate found objects as well as family mementos, even the so-called junk. Because each of these belongings once had previous owners, contained within each work is another story and an added layer of meaning.
Many of my pieces are autobiographical, although I rarely start out with this intention. “Lost Boys” was one of my first such works. A colleague gave me a toy train conductor found on the grounds of Westborough State Hospital where we were visiting an adolescent client. “Lost Boys”, the cover story of a magazine, was waiting in my mail when I got home.
Immediately, the title, the toy and my two brothers who both struggled with mental illness, became linked in my mind. Thus, this piece represents the intersection between my personal and professional life. To the toy engineer, I added family photographs, a toy pirate, and some wilderness scenes evocative of Peter Pan. Both brothers have since passed away, so I think of this as my memorial to them.
“Lest We Forget,” {image at left} the theme of most of my works, was based on the famous warning of George Santayana. This title piece is an assemblage meant to be a reminder of the devastation caused by war no matter how it is justified.
This art work began its existence as a cheese server covered with a clear plastic dome, which reminded me of hundreds of baby shoes on display in Holocaust museums around the world. To the cheese server board, I added a single white baby shoe with blue ribbon laces, which seemed a special sign of affection. I encased the shoe in rusty nails and other rusty metal, then covered it with metal wire and mesh. I never used the plastic dome. This was the first of many of my works about war.
A number of my works appear in medical and mental health settings: Tufts Dental School; Harvard Vanguard Health Center/Watertown; Riverside, a mental health program in Newton; and in the Newton-based clinic, Neuropsychology & Educational Services for Children and Adolescents (NESCA).
Because of my belief in the healing powers of art, in addition to my work as an artist, I serve(d) as an artist/mentor to young adults in recovery from substance abuse; to high risk adolescent girls; as a support group art facilitator for those suffering from chronic illness; and most recently, I have created “Sheltered Arts,” a project with my congregation to bring the arts to homeless children.
Artists throughout history have used their art to speak out against social injustice and to help make the world a better place. I am proud to be a part of that tradition.