Jackie Abrams

Precarious Shelters: Houses that Hold Us is a continually growing project designed to help raise awareness of the extreme range of homes and shelters throughout the world, as well as in our own communities. My artistic journey has led me to new and challenging creative work exemplified by this ongoing project which reflects the spirit of social justice art. The collection offers visual beauty and craft while seeking to answer vital questions, to bear witness, and to make a difference.

In 2016, I created a vessel called Shelter, now in the National Museum of Scotland. The piece explores the vessel as a symbol of home, and honors women’s roles in their homes and societies. It also exposes the precarious nature of some homes and serves as a reminder that universal emotions like hope, anxiety, joy and despair reside in those homes.

 My current project grew out of that work. It speaks to the connections between race, class, gender, poverty and more, and asks that we recognize the need for mutual learning, support and social change.

 My goal is to create a visual representation of several communities, crafted with a variety of materials and techniques into three-dimensional self-standing structures, that elicits an emotional response and helps raise awareness of precarious houses that exist everywhere. I hope people who visit these houses will reflect upon what they represent and be moved to act in support of others in ways that are just and honorable. 

A portion of proceeds from sales will be donated to local organizations that address housing: Groundworks Collaborative, Brattleboro Area Affordable Housing, and Windham-Windsor Housing Trust.

~Jackie Abrams

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