My Body, My Home

My Body, My Home  is a catharsis project focused on body trauma, scheduled to burn at Burning Man 2023. It will take the shape of a wooden coyote skeleton because coyotes symbolize resilience. The skeleton will be approximately 40 feet long; rib cage approximately 4.5 feet tall on the interior, so people can sit inside the rib cage and under the spine and pelvis. The bones will be arranged as if the coyote died peacefully in its sleep to symbolize overcoming trauma and going on to live full lives despite what we’ve been through.

The sculpture will be lit with LEDs to provide a subtle amber glow as if the skeleton is lit from the inside. This is meant to imply the soul of the creature is within it and represent the inner strength it takes to survive. I want the piece feel warm despite its macabre subject matter. 

The sculpture is meant to offer a space for everyone who encounters it to release their own trauma. Since the piece focuses on healing, my crew and I will carve and paint some of our body traumas into the bones before we bring the piece to playa. On playa, there will be permanent markers inviting people to write their own traumas onto the sculpture to be released when the piece burns.

The title of this piece was selected from the idea C.S. Lewis put forth that ‘you have a body, you are a soul’ as well as the poem “On Being a Coyote” by Laura Anne Whitley; both reflect the idea that everyone is more than the body they inhabit, but that the body is how we experience the world. Like myself, many of us struggle to feel at home in our bodies and I hope releasing some traumas through this sculpture will make that easier for everyone who is a part of it.

This project is completely self-funded, so please check out our Indiegogo to help make it a reality: https://igg.me/at/mybodymyhome/x/33256977#/

Contact me at mybodymyhomecoyote@gmail.com to get involved.