Sacred Objects + Adoption Stories
Adoption uncensored: It’s love and loss. Connection, disconnection, reconnection. Adoption is never one story as it weaves through lives, fundamentally altering them. Spanning generations and cultures, six people share their adoption stories through sacred objects from their own or their birth child’s earliest days. Alex Behr conducted the interviews. All paintings by Christine Shields ©2022.
William Smith
Gloria Harrison
Lincoln Kwan Miller
Eli Zheng Behr Hall
Elowyn Collins
Nick Stady
Voices
This project was supported by a generous Make-Build-Learn grant from the Regional Arts & Culture Council.
Events
To celebrate National Adoption Month, the California Dept. of Social Services is displaying the portraits and photos of sacred objects throughout November in its Sacramento headquarters. Alex and Christine will discuss the project during the reception. Photos of the Family of the Year and other nominated families will be displayed, as well as a photo book of all 11,880 foster youth awaiting a permanent home in California.
Reception Information: November 3, 2022, OB 9, Lobby, 744 P Street, Sacramento, CA. Noon-2:00pm
Before you go…
Donating will help keep and expand the project. Funds will further help to reimburse the artist for her time and effort creating the portraits. 5% of every $100 will go toward nonprofits that provide resources for all members of the adoptive community.