Shrine for Everywoman
United Nations Conference for Women • 1980-85
A place to see ourselves and discover others. A place to bag your stories, hopes, fears and visions for the survival of the plants.
—Betsy Damon in For the Blood of Gaia, by Christine Fillipone
Excerpt from For the Blood of Gaia, by Christine Fillipone
Damon invited women to write their thoughts and stories down, which she placed in small bags, special receptacles meant to preserve them and keep them safe, like reliquaries. The bags were then hung in rows on cords, like Buddhist prayer flags, and tied at each end to tall sticks arranged in a circle. Each woman’s thoughts formed a gathering space, “a place to meditate, meet, to think, to create rituals”… The space was meant as a safe one for recovery, spiritual connection, and empowerment. The recognition of the divine in all life forms was an important component of the feminist spirituality movement, which required that nature and the body be honored.
Performances
Soho 20 Gallery • NYC | 1988
UN Plowshares Café • NYC | 1986
UN World Conference on Women • Nairobi, Kenya | 1985
UN World Conference on Women, Glyptotek Museum • Copehnagen, Denmark | 1980