I am an interdisciplinary artist investigating ways of knowing through mind, body, and heart. I blend research, documented actions on the land, and poetry with alchemical transformation to create artifacts, photographs, video, and collage. With nearly two decades of experience as an international economist and artist working in Jordan and Palestine, I have long sought to hold space for the pain and power of these places in the face of environmental and social injustice.
My current project, I join the visitors at the gates consists of 40 mourning rituals inspired by the guidance of Sufi mystic Shams Al Tabriz, to maintain an open heart. In the face of grief, I engage with artifacts, photographs, and poetry that link the mortal and divine. Carrying flesh and bone across wall and sea uses plaster casts of my fingers and teeth to embody Rule of Love #14, “every human being is a work in progress”. My work can also be seen on instagram @bryannamillisart.