Big Bang Votive — YVETTE MOLINA

BIG BANG VOTIVE AT THE VISUAL ART CENTER OF NEW JERSEY, FEBRUARY 2020 - JANUARY 2021

Big Bang Votive is a communal storytelling project that evolves over time. Participants are invited to share tales of love or delight that are subsequently rendered as painted symbols on a cosmic backdrop.

Interview for CALTA21 (Cultures and Literacies Through the Arts for the 21st century), January 2021. Videographer and editor: Dave Macarone.

Stories shape how we see the world, what gives us purpose and how we relate to one another. Big Bang Votive has a simple thesis: The act of sharing stories that focus upon love and delight will in fact create a world more rich with love and delight. Participants contribute their experiences as part of a collective votive; an offering to summon joy, connection, and love. Viewers in turn gain a moment to bathe in the glow of that shared hope.

The point is not to turn away from the myriad and very real challenges facing humanity but to recognize that love and connection is the necessary way through those challenges.

Big Bang Votive is a communal storytelling project built from three core elements: an interactive ritual, a growing installation of paintings, and an audioscape. Nearly 300 starry field paintings in egg tempera on panel were installed at the Visual … — Nearly 300 starry field paintings in egg tempera on panel were installed at the Visual Art Center of New Jersey for Big Bang Votive, February 2020 - January 2021. Photo by Etienne Frossard.

Engaging a gallery visitor at the Visual Art Center of New Jersey. Photo by Etienne Frossard.

HOW THE PROJECT WORKS: I meet with participants one on one (during the pandemic this has been adapted to Zoom). We sit facing one another and begin by holding between us a nine-foot square of silk that I’ve painted in deep indigo with scattered stars. I call this my Storycatcher. I ask permission to record their audio, then invite them to share a personal story of what sparks delight or inspires love in their life. These stories range from mundane rituals and silly antics to tender memories and extraordinary events. Some provoke laughter, sometimes an outpouring of tears. After each story is told, we discuss what object they would like me to paint as a symbol for their story. To close the ritual I ask them to paint a star onto the Storycatcher.

Participants painting a star on the Storycatcher to conclude the storytelling ritual.

Big Bang Votive installation detail. Photo by Etienne Frossard.