The way that art can crack open silence and create space for conversation has nourished Pleyel ’ s personal relationships , as well as her activism .
“ Art is one way that I feel comfortable to speak and try to make a change — whether that ’ s a change on a personal level , or a political one ,” she says . “ Art can be beautiful . It can be ugly . It can be hard to look at and emotional to look at it — but ultimately it ’ s a way to invite people into a conversation .”
For To ( get ) her , Pleyel wants to keep inviting people to join the conversation . She ’ s organized six iterations of meeting / melting / mending in different cities throughout the U . S ., with more to come .
She hopes to connect with art spaces and women ’ s centers throughout the coming year to build relationships and expand the reach of this project , building a network of To ( get ) her performances across the country .
She ’ s also created an activist kit with ideas for women who want to get involved , and hopes to be able to offer a free online version through her website by later this summer .
“ I ’ m very excited to see how others will be inspired by this project and interpret it in different ways in their own cities ,” she says . “ When we come together , and our voices are in unison we are empowered to create community , discussion and change .”
Rebecca Jean Olson is a writer and higher education advocate living in Portland , Oregon . She has an MFA in poetry from Oregon State University and her work has been published in
PANK , cream city review , Cimarron Review ,
Public Pool , Paper Darts , and others .
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