Dear Appalachia

Shauna Caldwell

Artist statement: Placemaking, nourishing connections between an environment and those who live there, is at the root of my artistic practice and serves as a way to assert that I am an active participant in my community and that my intentionality and actions matter. Not only is this work a record of the time and space that I occupy, but it also connects me to my own familial Appalachian story and history of working with local and native plants to sustain, remedy, and provide for one another. This tangible, physical process intimately connects me to the conceptual process of making and holding space for the creative energy of these mountains and your people, Appalachia, to dream and design our own futures. In essence, this work is my love letter to art and artists creating within your embrace, honoring all you have been and all you can be, while simultaneously attempting to situate you in a radical present.

Shauna Caldwell (she/her) is a white, Appalachian artist, educator, and scholar rooted in her hometown of Boone, North Carolina. She uses multimedia and photographic processes to honor land, familial connections, sacred relationships, and transformation. Through her work, she explores collaborative opportunities for the expansion of Appalachian placemaking through the arts and loving community. Caldwell received BFAs in both Studio Art and Art Education, an MA in Appalachian Studies and is currently pursuing an advanced graduate certificate in Non-profit Administration at Appalachian State University. She has exhibited her work locally, nationally, and internationally and was recently awarded a Julia Margaret Cameron Award for Women Photographers as part of The Worldwide Photography Gala Awards.

Shauna Caldwell - Dear Appalachia

Dear Appalachia

Shauna Caldwell

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