Bearing Witness To Dying

Authors

  • Karen Wallis York St John University, UK

Keywords:

Drawing Journal, Sketchbook, Death, Cancer, Social Media

Abstract

‘Bearing witness to dying’ is a personal account of how a drawing project, based in sketchbook drawing, which began as a simple exercise in maintaining my drawing practice, shifted in emphasis to become the observation of my husband’s final fight with cancer. As the months passed, it developed into a support system for living with the threat of impending loss, and finally helped me to survive the subsequent bereavement. Unconsciously, I was simultaneously creating a lasting record of precious and painful memories. The drawing practice is juxtaposed against a relationship with social media, which also became important as a support, and contrary to the usual manner of publishing intimate information, managed to reveal the events that were unfolding without ever revealing anything explicit.

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Published

2022-04-21

How to Cite

Wallis, K. (2022). Bearing Witness To Dying. TRACEY - Drawing and Visualisation Research, 16(1). Retrieved from https://ojs.lboro.ac.uk/index.php/TRACEY/article/view/349