Dear Ones.

Florence, Italy:: Lyall F. Harris & Patricia Silva,, 2022.. Edition of 10. 10.5 x 7.5 "; 18 pages. Single sided accordion structure. Digitally printed. Signed by Harris and Silva. Numbered. Lyall Harris: "Dear Ones," took inspiration from the correspondence between two female Florentine artists from early last century and, in a few words, became a more 'universal' exploration of how correspondence is a way to witness the lives of those close to us. The book (a digitally printed accordion) reproduces on the recto sides 8 prose poem letters in English to key loved ones-mother, father, daughter, sister, husband, lover, grandmother, friend (we wrote these letters)-with images of envelopes on the verso sides. The exhibition included an installation that used dozens of old envelopes and letters to support the concept and book." "Witnessing - Lyall Harris Patricia Silva": "A collection of 100 letters from the early twentieth century, found at a flea market in Sant'Ambrogio, triggered 'Dear Ones,' … a work of narrative poetry addressed to eight archetypes … Just days before this discovery, the artists' journey started in the Oltramo, on via Maggio, during a visit to the Contemporary Archives at Gabinetto Vieussux, a historic research library and home to the multi-decade correspondence between painters Fillide Levasti (1883-1966) and Leonetta Pieraccini Ceccchi (1882 -1977). "Theirs was the simple retelling of vignettes, the sharing of neighbourhood gossip, the challenge of producing art amid urgent daily chores, the reporting of minor ailments, the surprising speed at which children grow. 'For centuries, letters have documented people's experience in unassuming ways, because the peaks of life are few and far between,' Silva explains. 'What counts is the universal need to someone to witness what we do.' "Our art response to Fillide and Leonetta's archival correspondence was macro, 'says Harris. 'Why do we write letters? Few people get their names in history books, but everyone needs their experience documented. Forty years of correspondence means 'I love you', but it also means 'I was here.'