health

Grieving is a necessary byproduct of being human.

Perhaps it’s the loss of a pet, a dear family member, a relationship, or a safe structure that was taken away from you, along with the memories it held, in a disaster.

We will all grieve about something at one point or another. It’s an emotion we share.

When I first approached Jan Heaton to be a guest on the podcast and talk about grief, we were living in a different world. We had a recording session on the calendar and then the world as we knew it stopped.

It has become very clear that, whether or not we have lost loved ones during this pandemic, we are all dealing with grief of some sort. We have all lost something.

Artists are collectively grieving a number of things.

• The exhibitions, art fairs and festivals, residencies, workshops, and other opportunities.
• The plans we had made.
• The studio spaces we can no longer visit.
• The connection to others.
• Our routines.
• Our freedom to move about. To travel.

Grief on so many levels.

This is a huge topic and Jan wants to be very clear that she isn’t an expert on grief. I asked her to be on the show just to talk about her experience in hopes that it might be helpful—even if for only one person. Please enjoy this interview with Jan Heaton.