Katie Shipley – If I Write in Yellow
As part of Dialogue Box
AirSpace Gallery Window
Yellow is the last colour in the spectrum that someone with dementia loses.
If I Write in Yellow is a list, something that many of us use as an everyday tool, small reminders of what we have to do or things we have to buy. But this list is full of small, seemingly insignificant, things that most of us would take for granted. The list is written on a pane of glass and describes the area seen through and surrounding the glass, as well as events that might happen as the list is written, such as a person walking by. The artwork becomes a memory, a snippet of a diary in the day of the window, or the person looking through, and exists only temporarily until it is wiped away.
If I Write in Yellow illustrates a desperate attempt to communicate with a loved one. The list, written in yellow ink, becomes a description of life and experience for the sufferer. It visualises attempts to allow a person to remain independent for as long as possible. For the onlooker the list is written backwards, it shows an outsiders view of a relationship between a carer and the person with dementia. A relationship that is not understood by many but may only be avoided by a few.
