Christine Ilewski shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Good morning Christine, it’s such a great way to kick off the day – I think our readers will love hearing your stories, experiences and about how you think about life and work. Let’s jump right in? What is something outside of work that is bringing you joy lately?
I am deeply smitten by my 7 month-old granddaughter, Audrey, who I babysit for two days a week:)
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I am an artist and activist. My painting is primarily acrylic with multiple mixed media elements. It has always been “personal.” reflecting my experience as a woman, a mother, a wife, a sister, a daughter; a domestic, intimate life set in this era. I like to use landscape as my artistic “language” layered over found materials that I feel tell their own universal domestic story. Ie: curtains, lace, quilt pieces, etc. With a studio overlooking the Mississippi just across from St. Louis, the mighty river runs through all my work, centuries of secrets flowing between it’s shores. I try to reflect these ancient yet reoccurring human stories in multiple physical and psychological layers. My painting is represented by Ariodante Gallery NOLA, London Aire Gallery, AR, Elysian Gallery, Alton, in a current exhibit at StL Artist’s Guild and found in many private collections. I had a solo retrospective last year at the Margaret Harwell Art Museum in Poplar Bluff, MO for which a catalog is being produced.
I am also the founder/director of the nonprofit Faces Not Forgotten (www.facesnotforgotten.com) , a memorial project of portraits of young gun violence victims to give comfort to FNF families and raise awareness of this ongoing horrific loss. FNF has been awarded 3 National Gold Anthem Awards, the Focus STL What’s Right with the Region Award in 2021 and SIUE’s Martin Luther King Jr. Humanitarian Award this year . Most recently we will have 11 Faces Quilts, 88 portraits of young StL victims, on exhibit with the Black Rep Theater production; Enough Plays to End Gun Violence. These are locally performed readings of 6 award winning high school students on the subject of gun violence! Very profound…out of the mouth of babes essentially. These days I focus on collaborations like this for the project as I am spread a little thin with joyful but time consuming family obligations.
Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. What was your earliest memory of feeling powerful?
I won a little art contest when I was very young. It was a “coloring” contest but instead of coloring in between the lines, I had glued sequins and paper pieces on the form. When I won a prize for that I realized my own vision of creativity had worth and it empowered me to keep making art with whatever materials I wanted to in a “nontraditional” way. I could “speak” without words but with images and found materials! Certainly there was plenty of nontraditional art being made at the time but I hadn’t really grown up seeing it. This was my first “a ha” moment that the visual image can speak volumes and imprint in our subconscious so deeply…even in a way words don’t.
When did you stop hiding your pain and start using it as power?
When I was 20 years old, I lost my dad to suicide but I never spoke about it or even incorporated it into my art work until my dear friend, Fr. Larry Rosebaugh was gunned down in 2009. His death seemed so senseless after he had had such an impact as a social justice advocate for the poor and children of Guatemala! He had marched in Selma and had devoted his life to helping those who are “invisible”. I wanted to continue his legacy. I wanted to be brave and speak out about gun violence and the horrible wake of despair it leave behind. And I believe we have made a difference, keeping the memories of over 400 child victims alive but I am so saddened that there is no end to the continual loss of lives due to gun violence in this country.
Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. What would your closest friends say really matters to you?
My closest friends know that my personal relationships to family and friends always matters most to me; my relationships with my mother, my daughters and now my little granddaughter are at my core. I strive to be there for family and friends though I am sure I have failed them at times. But above any personal accomplishments with art or business, family and deep friendships are most enduring. If we can be kind to each other on a personal level, then I hope it will radiate to a more public level of human kindness.
Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: When do you feel most at peace?
I probably feel most at peace when I am immersed in art making in my studio to the background of a spectacular sunset over the great Mississippi River, anciently flowing south.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.facesnotforgotten.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/christine_ilewski/?hl=en
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christine-ilewski-0b596310/
- Twitter: none
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/christine.ilewskihuelsmann/
- Yelp: none
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLUs0EiGmu9HQI2fWBsVKq5C5UT9fDUwUF
- Soundcloud: none
- Other: https://www.facebook.com/thefacesprojectstlmo/https://www.stlpr.org/arts/2016-07-29/artists-bring-comfort-to-families-and-put-real-faces-on-tragedy-of-guns-killing-children
file:///C:/Users/Christine%20Ilewski/Downloads/p30-35%20(1).pdf
Image Credits
All photos were taken by Christine Ilewski
