Kelli Crockett Art

“Collected Fragments (2023) embodies the varying experiences of 15 emerging artists, intertwined by themes of introspection, reflection, and the passing of time. This 2D/3D exhibition draws together the graduating BFA seniors and celebrates their work as one before they pursue their creative careers.”

The Fragility of Memory was originally displayed in Kelli Crockett’s BFA exhibition, Collected Fragments. Following this show, the series was then displayed at Goodyear Arts in Charlotte, NC as part of The Shelf Life of Grief as well as the 56th Annual Student Juried Exhibition at UNC Charlotte, where Kelli’s work placed 2nd in show. The collection will be presented at the Annual Undergraduate Research Conference at UNCC in April 2024 and will be featured in Nova Literary Arts Magazine Vol 55 in May. The central painting, A Bunny for Me will be on display in the UNCC Career Center Art Gallery for one year beginning in May.

The following is from Kelli’s artist statement on display in Collected Fragments:

“My current thesis work focuses on the role of sentimental objects, and the stories they tell. What could you observe about someone’s life, just from the objects they hold dear? It is a very human thing, to instill our sense of remembrance, grief, and love into something that can be damaged, or even lost. It seems foolish to do so, and yet we cannot help ourselves from materializing our emotions into something we can hold and cherish. It’s a risky act of creation, of self-soothing, of love. I adore this so-very-human act, foolish as we are. The vastness and gentility of these emotions helps me to seek a greater understanding of my own sentimentality. To encompass and further investigate this concept, I’ve painted a series of objects that I keep close to myself. I’ve titled this series of oil paintings The Fragility of Memory.

The central image features the childhood stuffed bunny that I’ve had since before I was born. This is my only sentimental object that begins and ends with me; from there, other objects spread out into my family: My mother’s wedding dress that I tried on when I was 7, and again at 22 for this project. Her locket that she gave me on my 18^th birthday, that she wore throughout my childhood, and I’ve worn every day since. My father’s kitty-cat belt that he and I both wore all through our college years, decades apart. My late grandfather’s gavel, which has hung on the wall in my house my entire life. The little suitcase my grandmother travelled with in the 50s, that I use every day. Items from my grandfather’s time in the military, guarding schools during integration and almost driving a tank off a cliff. The angel from my great Aunt Betty’s casket and Aunt Dee Dee’s little ceramic flower cup, the only thing I asked for from her house when she died. These objects, and those unlisted, make me feel closer to the people who have filled my life. They are the most irreplaceable, priceless, and vital parts of me.”