Brianna Fitzgerald

Longing, desire, grief. At the root of my practice is a struggle with accepting loss, contending with misguided notions of permanence, and a profound longing for that which cannot ever be had or replaced. Through video and photography, I record repetitive performative actions which I undertake primarily with two sets of items that have been in my family for most of my life: a 35-year-old spool of string, and a collection of over 500 matchboxes. These cheap and consumable items are also highly emotionally charged and sentimental. My work is a document of my attempts to preserve and restore these objects, a futile exercise in attempting to undo the past or render permanent the vulnerable present. Rooted in feelings of longing and nostalgia, my work can be interpreted as a meditation on longing and its relationship to grieving and memory.