Remembering those lost to gunfire: 'Soul Box Project' opens tonight at IHM Motherhouse
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An exhibit to remember those lost to gunfire opens tonight in the gallery at Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Motherhouse, 610 W. Elm Ave.
“The Soul Box Project: This Loss We Carry” will be on exhibit through July 9. An opening reception will take place from 6 to 7:30 tonight in the gallery. Attendees should enter the Motherhouse through the A-wing entrance. Admission is free.
The Soul Box Project is a national exhibit that remembers those who died or were injured through gunfire. The project was created by Leslie Lee, a Portland, Oregon, studio artist. Lee was inspired to action after hearing about the Las Vegas music festival shooting in 2017.
Each 3-inch by 3-inch origami box in the exhibit represents a person killed or injured.
“What we are trying to do is have someone walk into these displays and have an ‘ah-ha’ moment,” Lee said. “It might mean a person goes home and locks up a gun. Or a mother talk to her kids about the futility of anger and retribution. Or a gun club adds another safety class. Or a voter writes to his legislators. Every one of those actions is a success. We need to appeal to each other on an emotional level if we want the current gun culture to change.”
Today, Lee’s project is a national community art project. From 2017-21, people from 39 states contributed boxes. In October, 2021, 200,000 Soul Boxes were displayed on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.
Today, the project offers small and large exhibits of boxes throughout the country. Communities may borrow a selection of the panels exhibited in Washington, D.C., or create their own smaller displays to illustrate statewide or local victims of gun violence, defense, accidents and suicides.
The boxes on display at the Motherhouse will represent area and regional gunfire deaths.
“In support of the Soul Box Project’s mission, IHM Sisters have adopted a branch that represents the gun death numbers in Michigan and Ohio,” the IHM communications department said.
Jen Shankie from the Motherhouse said after the IHM exhibit closes, area organizations may borrow the IHM’s exhibit at no cost.
“The act of making a Soul Box and the Soul Boxes themselves are a beautiful tribute to lives violently cut short. We believe in the transformative power of this beauty and are honored to exhibit ‘This Loss We Carry’ and to be able to make it available for others until there is no longer a need,” Shankie said.
To learn about borrowing the exhibit, contact Shankie at jshankie@ihmsisters.org or 734-240-9691.
“Soul Box Project: This Loss We Carry” will be on display from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays at the Motherhouse. Admission is free. The public may view the exhibit by appointment only; 48-hours notice is requested. For more information about the exhibit and admission, contact Patty Poirier at ppoirier@ihmsisters.org or 734-240-9754.
For more information about the exhibit, visit www.soulboxproject.org.
This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: 'Soul Box Project' at IHM Motherhouse remembers those lost to gunfire
