AT EASE:
Bridging the Military Civilian Divide
A traveling, interactive installation, the exhibit includes portraits and narrative from female military service members, Care Packages created by service members and their spouses, and Letters Home: reflections on military life.
EXHIBIT PANELS
Click to view
INSTALLATION
UNC Carolina Union
PORTRAITS
“What part of your body do you most associate with military service?”
We asked female service members this question and then watched, listened, laughed, and were deeply moved by their creative responses.
CARE PACKAGES
We invited participants to create a“care package,” a diorama offering a glimpse into an issue or experience the participant cared about and wanted to communicate to others, specifically theTo:on the lid. These care packages address everything from the challenge of meeting the military’s physical fitness requirements to the common recognition that “It only happens when the spouse is away” to the daily reality of living with a traumatic brain injury.
LETTERS HOME
At the start of our workshops, we asked participants a simple question, “What do others not understand about your experience?” Others might mean family, other service members, or civilians. At the workshop close, we invited participants to write a letter with the prompt“You have no idea.”
Many letters deal with deeply personal, and sometimes troubling, reflections and invite us to consider our own connection or disconnection to what we ask of our service members and their families.
Click to read all letters
THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS