The Company We Keep

   The Company We Keep is one-of-a-kind miniature artist's book transforms the familiar form of a junk journal into an    

   intimate archive of personal memory. Measuring approximately 3 × 3 inches, the book combines found papers, vintage-

   inspired imagery, handwritten notes, and layered textures to create a collection of quiet remembrances.

   While many of the book's written pages contain private names, phone numbers, and personal reflections that remain 

   intentionally unseen, the visible imagery offers another way of remembering. Colors, textures, and visual fragments were 

   carefully selected because they evoke the personalities, relationships, and shared experiences of the individuals 

   represented within the book. Rather than illustrating specific people, the imagery serves as a visual language of 

   association, preserving memories through atmosphere rather than portraiture.

   Small enough to fit comfortably in the palm of a hand, the book invites close viewing and slow discovery. It celebrates the

   everyday traces that connect us to one another and suggests that even the most ordinary fragments of paper can become

   meaningful repositories of memory.

   Artist Statement

   The Company We Keep

   Memory is rarely preserved in grand gestures. More often, it survives in small, ordinary things—a handwritten phone number, a 

   familiar color, a scrap of paper tucked into a drawer, or the worn edges of an object handled many times before. These 

   fragments, insignificant to anyone else, become deeply meaningful because of the people and moments they represent.

   In creating this miniature artist's book, I wanted to explore the quiet ways we carry others with us. Hidden throughout its pages

   are the names of friends, phone numbers, and personal notes that have become part of my own history. While these written 

   memories remain private, the visible imagery offers another way of remembering. Each color, texture, photograph, and paper 

   fragment was chosen not for its literal meaning but for the emotions and associations it evokes. Together they form visual 

   portraits built from memory rather than likeness.

   The intimate scale of the book is intentional. Measuring only three inches square, it invites viewers to slow down, hold it carefully,

   and experience it at close range. Like memory itself, its discoveries are quiet rather than dramatic, unfolding gradually through 

   touch and careful observation.

   I am drawn to the idea that books can serve as personal archives—not only preserving facts, but also capturing feelings, 

   relationships, and the subtle impressions left by those who shape our lives. This work reflects the belief that even the most 

   commonplace materials can become extraordinary when they carry the weight of personal experience.

   Although rooted in my own memories, the book is intended to resonate beyond them. I hope viewers are reminded of the people

   who have quietly influenced their own lives and of the small objects and fragments that become lasting vessels of 

   remembrance. In the end, The Company We Keep is less about recording the past than honoring the connections that continue 

   to shape who we become.

   Year: 2023

   Medium: Mixed media artist's book

   Structure: codex

   Materials: Archival papers, mixed media

   Dimensions:    3.25” x 2.75” x .75”

   Edition: Unique

   Status: Private Collection