Browse Exhibits (6 total)

The focus of this collection is how families share recipes, specifically looking at my own family’s history of recipe preservation. The artificats that make up this exhibit are images of family recipes across three generations written on paper, index cards, and shared via text message. The pages found on the right are organized alphabetically based on the recipe title. 

It is difficult to pinpoint exactly when these recipes were written, or even who originally introduced the recipes to my family members as many recipes have been passed down and rewritten by various relatives. 

The physcial copies of the images are all housed in my mother's pantry. When I was an undergraduate student she took the time to write out the favorite recipes she made for our family so that I could recreate the food for myself. Interestingly, a majority of the recipes on fresh index cards were originally shared by a greatgrandmother and have been rewritten in order to have a ledgible copy yet to be tattered by time and use.

As you navigate through the exhibits pages you will notice changes in medium of delivery, handwritting, personal notes and the recipes themselves. It is easy to tell what recipes are truly loved by the food stains and ripped pages. Hopefully the viewer will notice the intricacies in circulation and method of sharing recipes with family. 

Family Connections

You'll notice names reappear throughout the collection. To assist in navigating family connections feel free to reference the following family connections to bettter understand the spaces these recipes have traveled and the length that they have been made within the family. 

Sidney Turner ---  Exhibit creator (1996-present)

Alex Turner --- Sidney's younger brother --- Born in Florida

Lisa Turner --- Sidney's mother --- Born in Windsor Ca, moved to Florida 1992, married Jeff Turner 1992

Pamela Grouix --- Lisa's mother --- Lived in various Canadian provinces

Roxanne Beausoleil --- Pamela's sister --- Lived in various Canadian provinces

Catherine McNamara --- Pamela's sister --- Lived in various Canadian provinces

Catherine Pelzer --- Catherine, Pamela and Roxanne's mother --- Lived in various Canadian provinces

Jeff Turner --- Sidney's father --- Born in Maine USA, raised in Windsor Ca, moved to Florida after college

Riene Shattuck --- Jeff's grandmother --- Lived in Maine USA

This exhibit is an in depth anthology cataloguing the writing involved in summer camp; from being a camper to a counselor. In places where technology is almost nonexistent, the writing of summer camp forms the core bonds between the people there and functions as the main form of communication. Everyday writing is the crucial infrastructure for any summer camp to operate, whether it’s getting things done on site or keeping kids connected to their families and “the outside world” everyday writing is an everyday practice over the summer. This exhibit includes letters, notes, schedules, plane tickets, and much more. It serves to bring a sense of nostalgia to a digital age. In today’s world tweeting, texting, em ails, and the internet in general takes over daily life to a point where everyday writing has become something people don’t recognize because it’s turned into second nature. Taking thetime to disconnect by choice or by force brings everyday writing into the forefront of people’sminds because it’s turns the necessity to communicate back into a process that takes time ratherthan an instant message.

This exhibit showcases the work of Carol A. Kiefel through a series of hand-painted greeting cards with handwritten text. Although she created and mailed these cards to a number of family members and friends, all of the cards in this exhibit were maiiled to me, Jessi Thomsen, her great niece. Reading across and between these cards, I analyze the underlying currents and meanings of her original images and text and the insights about everyday writing that might be gained at the intersection of verbal and visual. The exhibit also acts as a window to see the dynamics of life events of both sender and receiver and the affect attached to those events, words, images, and relationships.

Start by navigating to the Gallery as Introduction to view the full set of fifteen greeting cards. Then, browse through the other pages to see specific cards put in conversation with each other within the context of everyday writing.