Sometimes I feel I must step out of the comfort zone, out of the walls of my studio where I have some measure of control, and invite other participants to become involved with my work.   

These installations carry with them the unique imprint of the individual, and achieve a richness that could not be created by the vision or imagination of any one artist.  

The activity of making collaborative work creates a space for the sharing of ideas and feelings, while resulting in the development of community spirit.

The Healing Hearts Project, an installation to honor those who died on 9/11 and to express our mutual hope for the future.

I am an artist who lives in Connecticut but also less than ten blocks from the World Trade Center tragedy. I felt the need to respond visually to so much devastation. I invited thousands of people to help create a collaborative piece, which has been part of our own healing process, and make the statement that we as Americans stand united.

The Wishbone Project is a collaborative project involving a cross section of society, which includes men, women and children (some at risk), senior citizens from diverse cultural backgrounds and internationally based participants.

This process explored the ways in which wishes reflect our desires and hopes. Wishes also arouse feelings of loss, fragility and impermanence yet can generate healing.

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THE WISHBONE PROJECT

Bedtime Stories, a collaborative work created as an interactive piece. My partner, Rochelle Rauchberg a photographer, worked with me on this project at the Norwalk Emergency Shelter over an 18 month period of time.

As women and mothers, we sought a common ground with the homeless mothers and wanted to make the homeless problem personal and human; and to create an emotional connection between the gallery viewer and the homeless.

Bedtime Stories
June Ahrens & Rochelle Rauchberg - 1997
22' x 53', Multimedia Installation
2-D framed 40" x 48"

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