CHRISTINE HELLER

Interview by Harryet Candee

Images Courtesy of Artist

“This is the story of one little girl growing up in America in a seemingly perfect family. Under the appearance of normalcy and order, a father wielded power over every family member through his expressions of rage, control, and predatory sexual behavior. For decades she internalized them to the detriment of her self-esteem and agency. She understood that her father’s distorted projections had nothing to do with her.

Harryet Candee: Despite the seriousness of this body of work you have created, it is very eye-appealing and draws you in to read and examine the design, color, and messages you put forth. Much of your topics revolve around similar heart-felt issues that affect us all, be they whispered or loudly expressed amongst each other to understand and find solutions. There is much to say about family abuse, and you have taken this opportunity to share your story. Tell us about your ideas that took you from concept to completion and, in what ways were you emotionally affected when you saw it hung on the walls at TSL?

Christine Heller: I have dealt with my family issues for decades in my work via various media. I want to break thru the silence, anger, and depression to uncover the secrets of my family’s dysfunction.

Seeing the work installed at TSL Gallery and the large 4’ x 5’ prints (made from my 11” x 14” originals) on the walls was thrilling. The assembled prints tell my story. I feel relieved because I took three years to summon the courage to get my collages out of a drawer to show them publicly.

Viewers reminisce about their upbringing and childhood experiences when viewing this exhibit. Returning to our childhood can be a mix of good and bad memories, whether we experienced similar ones to yours or others. It could be life-changing for some when they get that “click” from what you have brought to the surface. What are some of your expectations and reactions people might have that you would expect or would feel good about?

CH: I felt shame about the work because I was afraid people would think I was an ungrateful daughter or judge me for my father’s behavior. I revealed my small collages to a few friends, and although some reacted positively, others didn’t comment. A social worker friend told me not to show them without a therapist present because people would be triggered.

But the infuriating overthrow of Roe vs. Wade by the Supreme Court gave me the courage to come out with my work. I want to be in solidarity with other women and girls. The events I disclose in my work are experienced by women every day. The response to the work at the TSL Gallery has been surprising and deeply satisfying. Both women and men say they appreciate the fresh, open way I have told my story. They value my honesty, understand the colors, and are amused by the birds’ snarky, truthful banter. They tell me their stories-heartfelt, sincere reminiscences, even some that have been hidden for a long time.

You have done extensive work on the history of suffragettes, immigrants, children, dance, and times of war and upheaval. Are you an activist through your art? What initiated this focus and direction?

CH: I am an activist; I focus on issues that I find morally reprehensible, such as the plight of children in the Iraq War and the Syrian refugee crisis. In 2005, when I saw a photo of a young American woman soldier who had lost a leg in the Iraq War, I thought it could be my daughter. I immediately began an America Comes Home installation, with limp, life-sized cloth figures, like shrouds, secured at 5’ along a 100’ wall at Emma Willard School in Troy, NY. The figures represented dead and wounded Americans who came home from the war.

I gathered photos for that installation and found

1” x 1” photos of dead Iraqi children. The Bush Administration would not allow Americans to see the flag-draped coffins of dead Americans coming home from the Iraq War or pictures of dead Iraqis, especially Iraqi children. But I found small, lowresolution photos of Iraqi children on obscure websites. In 2006, I used those photos for an installation called In Our Name: Iraqi Children in War, exhibited at the Daniel Performing Arts Center at Bard College at Simon’s Rock in Great Barrington, MA, and at the Hudson Opera House in Hudson, NY. I made eight 6’ x 6’ drawings on a scrim of the children’s faces and two 3’ x 40’ friezes of children holding hands, gradually disappearing over the length of the friezes. Many people who came to that show cried as they entered the space surrounded by the 6’ x 6’ drawings of Iraqi children’s faces, as they realized the devastating truth of those dead children.

In 2016, I painted a 10’ x 40’ mural, A Story of Their Own: Refugees in Crisis, for the MartinMullen Gallery at SUNY Oneonta, Oneonta, NY, depicting the plight of Syrian refugees. In that mural, drawings of individuals’ faces informed us that the shadow figures were not shadows at all. Those silhouettes represented fleeing Syrians, each with a story of their own.

I am also inspired to make art about causes I feel passionate about. When Hilary Clinton ran for president, I wanted to find the women who paved the way for her candidacy. The origins of women’s rights in America began with the suffragists, including white, black, and native Americans, who worked for 70 years to get the vote for women. The history of the women’s suffrage movement shows the tough choices that had to be made, the setbacks over the seven decades-long battle, and the backlash to women voting. The ratification of the 19th Amendment to grant women the vote passed by one vote in Tennessee, the final state of ¾ of the 50 United States required for ratification. To honor those who fought so hard for women’s suffrage, I created a limited edition portfolio, Women Vote !, which pairs lithographic prints of fifteen suffragists, including three women of color, with brief biographical texts printed in letterpress. The first 9 of the edition of 10 portfolios have been purchased by book collections at the New York Public Library, Vassar College, Smith College, Johns Hopkins University, George Mason University, University of Delaware, Denison University, Carlton College and,, Princeton University’s Graphic Arts Collection.

There is something extraordinary about all of the work that you have created over the years. There are signs of hope shining through the eyes of those you have portrayed. Looking at your work retrospectively, what would you say was most profound for you in its creation and execution, and why?

CH: The process of making art is always mysterious and exciting. The unconscious search for form and meaning is engaging, like finding a vein to mine. The process allows me to fly above and beyond my will, my determined, opinionated, conscious mind that carries all the criticism collected from many sources, including my critical voice.

I understand you are also an educator. Can you tell us what you have taught and what age groups you have reached? What did you teach? What did you learn from your students in return?

CH: I love teaching adolescents and college students. I am inspired by their openness and enthusiasm, which energizes me when I return to my studio.

Visual communication is one of the best ways for people to understand the ways of humans, good and bad. Do you thoroughly enjoy your work and feel the need to keep pursuing what you have done, or do you want to pick up a different form of self-expression at some point?

CH: I am a visual artist – I will always be making art. It is essential. Being an artist is crucial for my survival.

“Father Knows Best’, on view until April 23, 2023 at Time & Space Limited, 434 Columbia St, Hudson, NY, 518-822-8100, fyi@timeandspace.org