Spatial Design | Textile Art | Immersive Interactive Storytelling ITP-Blog About
Echoes of Absence
At the heart of the installation is my poem Ausencia (Absence), which captures the exact moment when the presence of a loved one becomes irrevocably absent. Its cyclical and straightforward structure reflects the echo of loss, conveying its tension and lingering silence.
AUSENCIA
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Ausencia
no palabras
un minuto
un silencio
​
PROFUNDO
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Ausencia
de tu voz
de tu aire
de tu esencia
​
Ausencia
de tu risa
de tu ira
de tu vida
​
Ausencia
no palpita
un segundo
un vacío
​
ETERNO
​
Ausencia
de tu cuerpo
de tu piel
de tu aroma
​
Ausencia
de tu amor
de tu amor
de tu amor
................ Ausencia
ABSENCE
​
Absence
no words
one minute
a silence
​
DEEPER
​
Absence
of your voice
of your air
of your essence
​
Absence
of your laughter
of your anger
of your life
​
Absence
no beat
one second
an emptiness
​
ETERNAL​
​
Absence
of your body
of your skin
of your scent
​
Absence
of your love
of your love
of your love
................ Absence
Recording the music
As viewers touch the embroidered losses on the black tulle strips, the white lights are activated, and the poem fills the space in three versions:
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And a musical rendition, composed and sung by my other daughter
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An English reading, voiced by my daughter
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A Spanish recitation, read by me, preserving the intimacy of its original language.
The white lights gradually fade, leading the sculpture into darkness, which mirrors the emotional shift of widowhood: from public visibility to private reflection.
Our voices—my daughters’ and my own—read and sing, each carrying a unique echo of the same loss. In this way, Absence becomes a shared space: a chorus woven from the loss of a father and a husband, making grief visible and audible. In this soundscape of remembrance, poetry invites the audience to delve into the inner life of the installation, reminding us that while widows may feel isolated, grief is not theirs alone. Its effects extend beyond them, affecting families, communities, and everyone connected to the absence left behind.
A Multisensory Kintsugi
The golden light highlights rather than conceals losses and brokenness.
The scars of widowhood are acknowledged, showing that grief can transform into strength, connection, and renewed purpose.
Viewers’ interactions continue to direct the narrative. Gradually, the installation transitions to a wash of golden light, creating a “Multisensory Kintsugi” that merges poetry, music, and light into an immersive metaphor for healing.
Like the gold lacquer in kintsugi, the voices of my family—reciting, reading, and composing—intertwine to mend the fragmented moments of loss. They symbolize a profound restoration that springs from the strength of family, community, and society.