Shame to Pride by Stephanie Calvert

written by Houke de Kwant on August 24, 2015

This series, “Shame to Pride” by Stephanie Calvert is all about using art to transform shame into self-acceptance.

Stephanie: I have returned to my childhood home, an abandoned schoolhouse, to create art from the things my mother hoarded over the years and explore questions she can no longer answer in her current mental state. In transforming my experience of the space and the physical objects into art, I am transforming my relationship to my story, my perspective on who I am and where I am from. Some of the themes I’m exploring are life/death, creation/destruction, and order/chaos being part of the same process, as well as memories, family, and finding beauty in unlikely places.

It is my hope that people take away from this project the importance of shedding light on difficult experiences, accepting all parts of our selves, and sharing our stories. What makes us unique makes us beautiful. I’ll be presenting this series in an exhibition in NYC this November.