This past fall was the twentieth anniversary of my mother's death, an event that manages to insert itself into my work whether I want it to or not. This past fall my partner and I were applying to win a trip to Thailand, and while researching the things we could do while there I came across a holiday called Loy Kratong, in which thanks is given to a river goddess and little boats with lit candles float in the water. At the time my thought was this would be a great way to remember my mother, should we wind up in Thailand at that time. Loy Kratong is not about honoring the dead, it just seemed to me like a poetic way to remember her.

We didn't end up going to Thailand. I observed the anniversary of her death the way I have always done, by barely mentioning it to anyone. But the image of floating candles for her stayed with me and became a part of this ACTLab project.

The video creates the floating river / water and was projected straight onto the floor in the ACTLab. While it was playing, I laid out sea shells, paper to reflect more of the video's images, and lit candles I had made out of larger shells and wax. I used origami to create the floating boat for my piece.