On Thursday January the 29th, Sonya Clark spoke to a crowd of over 100 at the Anderson Gallery, VCU. The lecture topic focused on her exhibition which is in it's final showing at the Anderson Gallery; the last showing after 10 years of being displayed all over the country.
Her collection, "The Beaded Prayers Project" is a collection of over 5000 "amulets" created by individuals from 35 different nations.. Clark had people create them during work shops she held, and eventually she began receiving the beaded prayers in the mail from strangers. As Clark explained during her talk, there were a few basic rules for a piece's inclusion.
- The creator must write a secret or prayer and put it inside the amulet
-there must be two of each prayers; theoretically, every piece in the exhibit has a twin out in the world
-the packet must be sealed, and have at least one bead
Clark discussed the significance of the bead in depth. Beads have been around for over 75,000 years. Amulets, or beads, where born when people had something so precious to them, they wanted to wear it on their person. Clark says the power of a bead is in it's hole; it's ability to be strung.
Clark discussed the community and culture of her project; she said she feels in it the presence of the 5,000 people. She also disused the power of secrecy. She subscribes to the nothing that "there are things inside of is that make us who we are. What really matters is that thing we can't see; the power in the project is the thing you can't see."
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