The Mourning Project, Featuring 20,000 Handmade Baby Booties  is a Memorial, a Community Art Project and a Call to Action

A little elegy for each American child lost before their first birthday each year, The Mourning Project is community art project that includes 20,000 handmade baby booties, on display from Saturday, June 22 through Saturday, August 10 at The Gallery at The Kranzberg Arts Center. Spearheaded by visual artist Mary Vaneecke and presented by Generate Health, Infant Loss Resources and the March of Dimes, The Mourning Project invites the community to view the collection and learn how infant mortality affects our community and what we can do to improve the lives of babies and loss families.

The United States’ infant mortality rate is the highest in the developed world, a fact that shocked Vaneecke and called her to action. She rallied the fiber art communities and loss families to make over 20,000 pairs of baby booties. Whether sewn, knitted, felted, woven or crocheted, makers donated handmade baby shoes in the colors of mourning: black, white, and gray. Gathered together, these small elegies literally paint a compelling picture too big to ignore: a 38′ by 38′ image of a heart with baby feet inside.

“As a visual artist, I believe in the power of art to change hearts, minds, behavior, and the world,” she says. “Think about the famous AIDS Quilt, a community art project commemorating the loss of more than 80,000 lives.  By ‘drawing’ a picture of a problem, we can see and feel the enormity of it.  Our country, our leaders, and lawmakers need to see exactly what infant mortality looks like in America.”

The Mourning Project exhibition will be viewable during gallery hours, Saturdays from Noon-4 p.m., as well as by appointment (call 314-533-0367, ext. 123). Additional special events surrounding the exhibition include:

June 22, 5-7 p.m. – Opening reception with the artist + butterfly release at 5:30 p.m.

July 24, 10-11 a.m. – Panel discussion: How We Can Support Loss Families

August 10, 8:30- 11:30 a.m. – Outdoor Exhibition including Strides Steps of Remembrance Run/Walk to benefit Infant Loss Resources at Frontier Park, Katy Trail, 500 S. Riverside Drive, St Charles, MO.

“Every infant death is a loss to our whole community, and we are honored to help raise awareness of this critical issue,” says Kendra Copanas, Executive Director of Generate Health. “The persistently higher rates of infant death and racial disparity in Missouri reflect a failure of public policy and systems to support the well-being of all families. Generate Health is working towards a future where Black families in St. Louis thrive, before, during and beyond pregnancy.”

For more information, visit TheMourningProject.com.