HER RELIC

An immersive installation showcasing 500 pounds of Lavash

Glendale Library Arts & Culture and ReflectSpace Gallery present HER RELIC by She Loves Collective, an expansive yet intimate art installation showcasing 500 pounds of traditional Armenian Lavash bread. HER RELIC continues and extends She Loves Collective’s exploration of healing, moving forward, and growth through a variety of themes broadly construed as “relics”, which was presented in their previous iteration of this installation, MY RELIC, that showcased along Artsakh Avenue in Glendale from April- May 2021.

In HER RELIC this narrative continues, paying closer attention to the role women play in society, particularly in Armenian communities- exploring the life of a homemaker- a woman who made sure to keep her family nourished, safe, and loved. As a collective of female artists, She Loves Collective drew inspiration from the ancestral spirit of women. In creating this space, the energy and sacred being that may have been the previous owner of each item was channeled and celebrated, thus creating a sacred space. In viewing this sacred space, spectators are encouraged to image who or what called it home- a constant reminder of those who came before us, each with their own narrative- stories of trauma, trials, tribulations, and survival.

HER RELIC is sculpted and enveloped with roughly 500 pounds of lavash– a soft, thin flatbread recognized by The United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) having originated from Armenia. Lavash is typically prepared by women who sit on their knees before a hot oven to knead and roll out dough, followed by a quick waist dive into a vertical clay oven set in the ground to stick the unleavened dough into the inner walls. As a traditional staple of sustenance in Armenian culture, lavash typically represents nutrition and life. You, the spectator, has been invited to one of the most sacred rituals of all- to break bread.

She Loves Collective dedicates this work to Armenian women around the world- mothers, sisters, wives, daughters, she/her/they. Our Armenian-ness connects us, we are proud of you.

What’s in the details?

The presence of salt is representative of its importance in the life of Armenians. An element that will never lose its importance and strong properties. It is often said that when the salt is not enough, everything around loses its meaning. In ancient Armenia, salt was sprinkled as a custom to cleanse a person or a home from evil spirits. In Armenian mythology salt was a gift from the goddess Anahit, and closely associated with fertility. Salt was an inseparable part of the goddess Anahit, and together they patronized mother and child.

Housed inside ReflectSpace Gallery, an intimate experiential space for reflection and exploration, HER RELIC drew on “reflect” in a more literally way by incorporating several reflective mirrors, forcing viewers to stare at themselves and reflect inward.

Each household item is representative of day-to-day tasks that are carried out by the woman who is the backbone of the family who resides here. We may not know her name, her favorite color, or what she looks like- yet we know her.

This space is shape shifting, a continuum, longing for an ever-changing environment, it progresses and breaths air. The family cat prances around while everyone sleeps, there is life amongst these household items and furnishings. Its tail causes the globe to spin- there is an interconnecting energy. Do you feel it?

Video projection interjects the stillness in this space: distorted and manipulated footage of traditional Armenian crochet patterns are drawn on multiple female figures, eyes darting with piercing gazes as though casting a protective spell, mounds of indigenous patterns rising and falling like the sun and the moon.

Who was writing a letter, and to whom? Is this family happy? Have they lost someone? Are they currently experiencing trauma? What do they talk about when they are together? Do they remember the past or do they talk of the future?