Collage Series 2: Three Graces

Collage 2.8- Three Graces, copyright 2020 Linda Farrelly

Do these ladies look familiar? Sandra, Tina, and Nancy from Three Fates, another picture taken on the same day. These three, in many ways, were the center of my life. My grandmother Sandra was the head of the family. Aunt Tina had no children yet but loved to "borrow" my brother and me for outings and weekends. She was like a second mother to us. And of course, my mother Nancy. She enjoyed having us around but wasn't always sure what to do when things went south.

One day we were driving somewhere on the Long Island Expressway. Me and my brother were bickering (big surprise) and she had asked us to knock it off several times. Exasperated and about to blow her top, she pulled over on the side of the highway and told us to get out. We did, and she pulled away. We just stood there, unsure of what to do. We were both in grade school at the time. A few minutes later she came back and pulled over in front of us, just sitting there with the motor running. We promised to be good and got back in. It was never spoken of, at least not for a loooong time.

All of us have had these moments as parents. Nobody can drive you nuts-er than your own progeny. Were we scared? You bet. Did we simmer down once we got back in the car? Indeed. You have never seen two quieter children in your life.

Lately, I have become fond of using negative space in collages. Sometimes the cut-away "background" is at least as interesting as the figure I cut out. And what a fun way to talk about people's "internal" space, thoughts, feelings, moods. With these three women, everyone is smiling, but there's a lot going on inside them and between them. Lots of history, lots of emotion, lots of backstory.