‘Grief Must be Love with Nowhere to Go’ is one of many exhibitions that has opened at Sheffield’s Life, Loss and Death Festival.
The exhibition by artists Emily Simpson and Chris Alton was created to make a space for grieving and talking about loss.
Chris said: “When my Mum died, I expected that my grief would pass with time. When it didn’t pass, I didn’t know what to do. I wish I’d seen an exhibition, or a TV programme, or a film, which had portrayed grief as something that you learn to live with, rather than something you get over.”
Both artists collaborated to create the exhibition after losing a parent in their twenties and they hoped the exhibit could be a space for people to come together and speak about living with loss.
The exhibit incorporates the words and feelings of people that have attended previous grief workshops led by Emily and Chris, which are stitched into the canopy in the gallery.
The exhibit is not the only event run by the artists, with a ‘grief karaoke’ night being held from 6 to 8pm on Saturday at Bloc Project which is also the last night of the exhibit.
Chris said: “This project has been really focused on bereavement, so we’re using this as an opportunity to address the breadth of grief and loss. You might want to sing about the end of a relationship or losing a job, it’s open to interpretation! Everyone is welcome.”
Emily believes that art can be a tool for healing, saying: “We also need the support of mental health professionals; greater access to counsellors. Grief is complex, something that shifts and changes over the years.”
The exhibit took two months to create and the artists also created a publication that explores the complexities of communicating loss with the English language.
Chris also believes that NHS mental health services are underfunded. He added: “If we want change, we need to fund the public services that will make space for it to happen. That means electing a government that values the NHS. Art should be one of many spaces where grief can be spoken about.”
The exhibit is open until Saturday and held at Bloc Project in Sheffield.
For more information click here.