I honestly don't know how graveyards came to be perceived as places to dread. My neighbor recently buried his mother in a nearby cemetery, and in my opinion he summed it up perfectly when he said that cemeteries are places filled with love. Everybody there was cherished by their family, with hopes that their memory will live on.
These
Memento Mori pieces by
Lady Lavona capture that sense of magical remembrance. Each tintype is a portrait of a different person. Who were they? How were they remembered by the ones who loved them? And how does our looking at these portraits - remembering them even though we've never met them - bestow upon them a certain immortality? Are they thankful to be remembered?
I honestly don't know how graveyards came to be perceived as places to dread. My neighbor recently buried his mother in a nearby cemetery, and in my opinion he summed it up perfectly when he said that cemeteries are places filled with love. Everybody there was cherished by their family, with hopes that their memory will live on.
These Memento Mori pieces by Lady Lavona capture that sense of magical remembrance. Each tintype is a portrait of a different person. Who were they? How were they remembered by the ones who loved them? And how does our looking at these portraits - remembering them even though we've never met them - bestow upon them a certain immortality? Are they thankful to be remembered?
6 comments:
Cemeteries were our first national parks. A picnic and visiting loved ones was a regular activity. It does make one wonder what happened. People miss out on some of the most amazing art and architecture by not visiting cemeteries.
Absolutely right, OFH: what happened? The dead once continued to be members of the community; now in the eyes of so many they are Other. Let's bring back those picnics.
Love these remembrance pieces. As for 'random acts of remembrance', brilliant!
Here in California, cemeteries seem to be very much out of the way, and I think that contributes to the sense of alienation.
While driving through the south, I passed many cemeteries, some next to churches, others in the middle of town. They seemed much more integrated and part of the community. They were all very sweet and sentimental!
I did not know this!
Very interesting...in a strange way comforting to me.
When I was little my family was in charge of keeping the cemetary nice. My mom always told us not to step on the graves or sit on the headstones. She had such respect for the place, and it rubbed off on me. My dad died when I was 8 years old, and I started to understand why. I just wanted to say I LOVE this post. There is nothing scary about a place where so many loved ones rest. It bothers me when they're portrayed in ways that make people never want to go. They're peaceful, and for me, full of great memories.
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