“Chrysalis” One Year Later
December 6th and 7th, 2024: I had the honor of exhibiting my work in “VulnerAbility” at Garage Gallery in Santa Fe, NM, alongside Veronica Primerano and Bernie Lieving. I was blessed with the experience of taking a solo road trip, bringing my work from Virginia to New Mexico for the exhibition. While I had traveled before without family, I had never traveled completely alone. Despite arriving exhausted, it was hard to recall a time I had felt more accomplished or free. That feeling was a great mood for setting up the show, and sharing some of my most personal secrets with 80+ strangers (lol). Jokes aside, I really did get an all-bases-covered bootcamp in vulnerability.
While I had a wonderful experience sharing the story behind my series with the people in attendance, I have been a little reluctant to be so vulnerable online. I decided to take time to reflect on the work, and explain each piece of my triptych “Chrysalis” today, one year later.
“Chrysalis”. Triptych of 18×18 inch wooden frames with sleeping bag material and mixed media. Charlotte Peach. 2024.
“Chrysalis” is a found object triptych made from a sleeping bag that I had for 16 years of my life. Given to me by my parents at age 13, the sleeping bag was present for most of my adventures. This triptych explores the idea of giving up your safety blanket in a “moving forward” ritual. Though not all memories with my sleeping bag were negative, I felt a need as an artist and a person to make a concerted effort to let go of the past and move on with my life. Committing to holding on to the lessons I have learned instead of the pain I experienced.
Over the course of 2024, this idea took many different forms, and was refined again and again with the help of friends and mentors. When the time came to actually cut into the sleeping bag to make the triptych, I felt a deep sorrow and reluctance to give it up. I decided to call a trusted friend and fellow artist to gain the perspective needed to press on. They suggested that me not wanting to give up my cocoon was the exact reason why I should go through with it. I cannot thank them enough for this wise advice.
When I was a young Girl Scout, I took this sleeping bag on my first overnight trip on the Appalachian Trail, which helped foster a love for nature and hiking that would help shape the rest of my life. The sleeping bag returned to the same stretch of the AT with me again as an adult when I reignited my love for hiking after years of struggling with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis, chronic fatigue, and muscle pain.
For this series, I wanted to use the details of the sleeping bag and the evidence-of-life, such as the stitching and stains, as narrative elements. The first piece, “Going Away” features a rounded vertical shape, to denote growth and upward motion. I selected this section of sleeping bag and stretched it loosely to reference the mess and imperfections of childhood. I opted to use the blue side of the material to represent the positive feelings I have towards this chapter of my life, and highlight how hopeful I felt at the time.
“Going Away”. 18inx18in. Wooden frame (By Richard Peach (thanks Dad)) and sleeping bag material. Charlotte Peach. 2024.
“Hidden Away” is representative of my late teens and early 20s. During my freshman year of college, my sleeping bag was my primary bed for a few months. At the time, I was not doing well in school, and struggling physically and mentally with my health. I ended up dependent on medicine ill-prescribed by my doctor. I chose the brown side of the fabric to represent this time in my life because it was the inside of the sleeping bag, and holds real stains, rips, and burns from this time period in my life. This is the most honest I have ever been about the pain and confusion I felt during this point of my life. Inside of the material, I hid multiple vape cartridges to acknowledge my self medicating, and a real bottle of my psychiatric meds. I hid them beneath the top most layer of the fabric to nod to the idea of a kid hiding something under their bed and my still present shame. The fabric is stretched more loosely on the left, and gets tighter as it moves to the right where the pill bottle is, in reference to seeking better professional help for my issues and starting a healing journey.
“Hidden Away”. 18inx18in. Wooden frame (by Richard Peach) and sleeping bag material with found objects and mixed media. Charlotte Peach. 2024.
“Up & Away” is me in 2024, 2025, and hopefully the future. The upwards and outwards motion created by the shapes in the stitching, and the fabric being stretched more tightly represent the strength and motivation I feel now, and the freedom to move forward from pain and live a better life. I chose the blue side of the fabric again because of my renewed hope about what life has in store for me, and I want to encourage others to be hopeful too.
“Up & Away”. 18inx18in. Wooden frame (by Richard Peach) and sleeping bag material. Charlotte Peach. 2024.
My goal for the series was to remind people (and myself) that you can feel such pain and still come out the other side, able to be happy and healthy. I’m so grateful; not only for the opportunity to show my work and share it now with you, but for each of the experiences that inspired “Chrysalis”. If we didn’t have lows to climb up from, we wouldn’t have summits to enjoy the view.
Photo from the Sandia Crest in Albuquerque, NM, taken on iPhone15 by Charlotte Peach in 2024.
“VulnerAbility”: Premiere Exhibition at Garage Gallery in Santa Fe, NM
December 6th, 2024; Veronica Primerano, Bernie Lieving and Charlotte Peach opened the premiere exhibition of Primerano’s Garage Gallery, titled VulnerAbility. This show explored themes of mental and physical health, medicalization, otherness, and growing through the immense challenges presented by life. The two day exhibition was held in Veronica Primerano’s home studio, functioning as a pop-up gallery.
“ “VulnerAbility: A Journey of Self and Strength” will showcase new works from three artists who explore their personal battles with mental and physical health and the triumphs of overcoming them. Their diverse mediums—ranging from painting to sculpture to multimedia installations—reflect a shared mission: to open up conversations about the struggles we face and the courage it takes to heal.”
We extend a big thank you to everyone who joined us on the 6th and 7th for a wonderful time sharing stories of pain, love, and moving forward. The intimate setting provided by Garage Gallery allowed for true connections between artist and viewer and facilitated conversations unlike those I’ve had at other art openings.
It was a wonderful experience to get to be so vulnerable with my work and the people who came to view (and touch!) my art. The attention and care shown to me by each person I spoke with will leave a lasting impact on me as both an artist and a person. It was also such an honor to get to work with Veronica Primerano and Bernie Lieving, who both have inspired and motivated me so much over the last year. This exhibition was a reminder to me about the power of pursuing your passion, and finding common ground with others through shared human experience and a willingness to try to understand one-another.
Peach with her found-object triptych: Chrysalis.
