Photo courtesy of circe dunnell
CIRCE DUNNELL
circe dunnell shows grace where there is suffering or hurt.
Few inequities fail to catch circe dunnell’s eye: how we abuse and neglect entire populations; the ways we leave people unseen and unheard. “As a child I pictured grace as something bestowed upon humans by a celestial being: God’s hand reaching out to give life to Adam on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, for example,” says the artist. “As an adult I have come to recognize grace as the kindness that is offered to those who have struggled and perhaps fallen short, or to those whose actions have not garnered their due attention.” Through art, circe brings grace, and honors the grace of those all around us. —Peter Bruun
The Spaces that Remain; Overbrook Asylum—Closed
circe dunnell
2013, 24″ x 32″, mixed media: encaustic, paper, archival printing, metal findings
“Known as Overbrook, New Jersey‘s Essex County Asylum for the Insane closed in 2007. It remained unoccupied for years until part of the hospital grounds were reincarnated as parkland. “How we, as a society, care for those who are ill, aging, and or needy remains an inscrutable, and deeply disturbing, subject for me, and is the subject of this piece.” —circe dunnell The Spaces that Remain; Overbrook Asylum—Closed
circe dunnell
2013, 24″ x 32″, mixed media: encaustic, paper, archival printing, metal findings
Ward 1
circe dunnell
2016, 8″ x 8″, mixed media: oil, encaustic, paper, archival printing
“How many in Overbrook’s Ward 1 cried, called out for help, or for forgiveness? Cried out in anger and resentment? Cried, asking for strength?” —circe dunnell Ward 1
circe dunnell
2016, 8″ x 8″, mixed media: oil, encaustic, paper, archival printing
Duncan Projects, circe dunnell, 2011, 8″ x 6″, mixed media: encaustic, paper, archival printing
Duncan Projects
circe dunnell
2011, 8″ x 6″, mixed media: encaustic, paper, archival printing
“The Duncan Avenue housing complex, commonly known as Duncan Projects, consisted of high-rise buildings that were eventually torn down in 2011 to make way for low-rise buildings that studies indicated were less prone to crime. How many people were dislocated because some study showed that high-rises increased crime? Poverty, lack of means and education increases crime. On the other side of Jersey City from this location, high-rises inhabited by wealthy individuals appeared to show very low crime rates. This is how we treat those in need: our society tears them apart.” —circe dunnell
Essex County, NJ—1939
circe dunnell
2019, 22″ x 30″, mixed media: encaustic, paper, archival printing, metal findings
”Redlining—refusing to provide financial services to consumers (primarily people of color) based on the area where they live—has deep roots in privilege and power. Redlining increased poverty, adversely affected infrastructure and education, and cemented racial inequities in place. “I was shocked when I exhibited this work by how many white people told me they were unaware of redlining. Many do not know how far back in U.S. history individuals in power used these maps for their advantage. Ramifications of this now-illegal practice are still manifested in cities and towns across the U.S. today.” —circe dunnell Essex County, NJ—1939
circe dunnell
2019, 22″ x 30″, mixed media: encaustic, paper, archival printing, metal findings
Signs
circe dunnell
2019, 30″ x 42″, archival digital print
“Gender identity is the personal sense of one’s own gender, whether or not that corresponds with a person’s assigned gender at birth. Various states in the U.S. initiated laws to prevent individuals from using the bathroom that matched their (chosen) gender identity. No law seemed as egregious as North Carolina, where the state government attempted to in effect ban transgender people from using bathrooms in state buildings. It took public outcry and ultimately court action to overturn the discriminatory law.” —circe dunnell Signs
circe dunnell
2019, 30″ x 42″, archival digital print
“Grace is according dignity to every being, because that is the right or just action. If people could offer grace more generously and more often, perhaps the world would be a less painful place.”
—circe dunnell