I Live Here Now, Part 13: A Second Look

Wayfinder

brass, address book, pencil, compass, key

This piece is about all the places I have lived in the United States since I left my childhood home for college in 1992: four states, 11 cities, 25 different apartments or houses. The top is a map that combines all of these places into one geographical area. I began with photocopies of the states, cut them into pieces according to the number of places I lived in each and then arranged these pieces into a new state. The cities are represented in their approximate location with a tiny perforation. My pattern of movement from city to city is defined with inscribed lines. Hanging from this map are a pencil, an address book, a compass and the key to my parents' house. (A key that has never been off my key chain until now.) It took me a few weeks to compile the addresses--I combed through papers and asked friends to look in their old address books. Once I had all of them, I wrote each in a different pen in chronological order in the "T" section. I revisited chatelaines for this piece, but my version is worn as a brooch instead of hooked to the waist. 

Thanks for reading.