re/collection: artist as chaplain, chaplain as artist

Abstract

I invited acquaintances to draw images on my arm; images that represented a story from their life. As they sat with me, taking a marker to my skin, I listened to their stories, collecting their recollections. These marks were permanently tattooed on my skin, rendering visible the everyday collection of memories and impressions. Through a consideration of storytelling and memory, I probe at the touchpoint where artist and chaplain meet. With a brief history of performance art and a poetic reinterpretation of the spiritual assessment model, this work presents collected fragments that touch on human interdependence, the body as site of memory, and the experience of caring for another.