My mother passed away twenty years ago today. I was 6 months pregnant at the time, and remember the day like it was etched in stone. But it is not that day that I want to think about when I remember her, it is the summation of her life. 
That is what is represented by Mom’s mere two page spread in my tribute journal. Two eight by eight inch pages to record a lifetime. It is, of course entirely insufficient, but as with my other pages, it gives just a glimpse into who they are.
I use imagery to say what there isn’t enough space to talk about with words. If you look close, you can see that the first thing I did was cover the entire two pages with writing about her. Non of that is legible now, but I know it is there, and I said what I wanted to say. The numbers represent her mathematical abilities, and the jumbo wheat heads the years that she devoted to developing high protein wheat varieties. (Not to mention the nutritious bowl of boiled wheat we sometimes had for supper… Ugh!)
Then I added some light gesso, and some sepia high flow paint to give the page a vintage feel. She loved earthy colors, and spent much of her life outdoors. I represented that with a photo, and some thin pieces of bark. The other photo is a family passport picture to represent the many trips taken for her work, as well as the most important to me fact that she was my mom!
Another page done in my Tribute Journal…. lots of blank ones left, for both the famous and the not so famous. Who would you include?
For those of you in the area, don’t miss my “Paying Tribute” workshop coming up July 9, 2016 at Tessera Fine Art Gallery. Call (316) 262-2435 to sign up!
shizzerlizzy
Beautiful tribute Kayann. I remember this as well. Bless you, friend. I don’t think we ever stop missing our mother. ????
Laura (PA Pict)
Your pages are beautiful. The sepia tones not only create a vintage feel but also give the whole spread a feeling of great warmth. It is a wonderful visual tribute to your mother. I hope it helped you to create it.
victoryrd
Thank you. I enjoyed the positive memories aroused by creating it. She is not forgotten even after many years, and hopefully it will help my children remember her as well.
aimeslee
A wonderful tribute. Fascinating to me, a student of American history and culture. Your mom sounds like she led a highly unusual yet ground-breaking life, perhaps not in Kansas? Perhaps it was commonplace there, but it sounds like she was a scientist type in an era where there were not yet many women doing that. xoxo
victoryrd
Thank you! Yes, she held a master’s degree and worked as a scientist at a time when it was still a bit unusual for a Kansas farm girl to attend college at all.