Grief, loss, and mourning are universal experiences and integral to the human condition. Yet in today’s society, grief often remains a taboo, almost unmentionable subject. The ways we express loss, and the extent to which it is socially accepted, can stir unease, discomfort, and apprehension. Whether for those we love, a way of life, a sense of belonging, or an aspect of our identity, how we navigate grief profoundly shapes our physical and mental well-being.

Working in photography, painting, video, and installation, exhibition artists convey both personal and collective encounters with grief as they interrogate themes of memory, empowerment, transition, and endurance. Do We Say Goodbye? challenges the finality of loss, inviting us to embrace grief as a shared yet deeply individual journey.

Featured Artists: Peter Bruun, Bethany Collins, Jordan Douglas, Mariam Ghani, Lydia Kern, John Killacky, Nirmal Raja, and Jamel Robinson

Programmatic partner: Vermont Association of Psychoanalytic Studies (VAPS) and Middlebury College
 

images: 

Miriam Ghani, There’s a Hole in the World Where You Used to Be, 2024, Single channel video film still

Lydia Kern, Double Sorrow Double Joy, 2023, Mixed media

Do We Say Goodbye? Grief, Loss, and Mourning is supported in part by the Maslow Family Foundation, Bill Gottesman and Debra Lopez Gottesman, and Ernie Pomerleau. Programmatic Partners: Vermont Association of Psychoanalytic Studies (VAPS) and Middlebury College. Hospitality sponsor: Lake Champlain Chocolates. Burlington City Arts is supported in part by the Vermont Arts Council & the National Endowment for the Arts.