Memo

This installation presents the genuine correspondence of a child with her parents from whom she was separated in Stalinist Russia.  Five authentic letters, written by Marina Kuznetsova while in a Soviet orphanage, unveil the mind of a child growing up in that troubled time.  The visitor witnesses the evolution of the girl growing up in isolation, yet still searching for connection with her mother who had been sent to a gulag.  The installation reveals itself gradually, like forgotten memories slowly coming to light.  Five envelopes, adorned with animated postal stamps, are arranged on a desktop reminiscent of a 1930s-era post office.  On a projection screen before the visitor an elderly woman appears, silent and waiting.  When the visitor opens one of the letters its essence is kindled on the screen and a voice is heard reading it aloud.  The past becomes present, resurrected from the page into an experience of sight and sound.