Take Only What You Need &

Take Only What You Need & is a collaborative art piece with Frankie Concepcion and Emily Biesemeier investigating the choices that resulted in leaving home and building new lives elsewhere. This artwork is the product of our individual and collective ruminations on the act of leaving: what we leave behind, the sorrow of decision, the joy of discovery, the recognition of communities cultivated and left behind, and the creation of self that arises from these choices.

Our goal was to make space for each of our individual stories of leaving while also acknowledging the universality of this experience. We wanted to create an experience of discovery, investigation, and guided reflection, which is why we chose to present our piece in an enclosed space, and give the viewer opportunities for pausing and privacy. By creating a triptych of personal pieces that can be seen as individual artworks or three parts of a whole, we invite each viewer to consider their own acts of leaving, the paths chosen and not chosen, where they’ve found comfort and belonging, and what they’ve needed to leave behind.