‘Sincerely Yours’ exhibit focusing on women’s secrets, fears, hopes and dreams

Each year, the Idaho State University Women’s History Month (WHM) Committee hosts a gallery exhibit that speaks to the way women communicate. Past years have demonstrated communication through quilting, a uniquely feminine activity, and journaling.  This year the committee once again looks at the written word, but with a twist.  The exhibit will share the words that have not been spoken, until now. The unique and extraordinary secrets, fears, regrets, hopes and dreams of ordinary women are the subject.  

The “Sincerely Yours,” exhibit will be on display March 5-9 in the ISU Pond Student Union Building Transition Gallery. The WHM Committee solicited anonymous contributions of postcards that depict thoughts, feelings and/or experiences of being a woman, wanting to be a woman or about women. More than 100 postcards will be on display and deal with a wide variety of topics that represent a vast range of experiences and emotions.

This show was inspired by the PostSecret blog that can be found at: http://postsecret.blogspot.com/. The site is updated weekly on Sunday mornings and may contain adult content. Since Frank Warren created the site on Jan. 1, 2005, PostSecret has collected and displayed upwards of 250,000 original pieces of art from people across the United States and around the world. The idea of the project is simple: completely anonymous people decorate a postcard and portray a secret that they have never before revealed. There is no restriction on what the content of the secret must be, only that it must be completely truthful and must never have been spoken before.  

Entries range from admissions of sexual misconduct and criminal activity to confessions of secret desires, embarrassing habits, hopes and dreams. By giving up their secret, participants enable themselves to move on, to heal, to hand off their pain and give up ownership of the things that hurt them.  It can also be a gift of love, sharing something that empowers others or gives the participant joy. PostSecret is involved with suicide prevention work.

Also opening in the PSUB Mind’s Eye Gallery on Monday, March 5, is “Voices from Within,” a show that features art and poetry from the Women’s Correctional Center in Pocatello.

The openings are free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served.

WHM has been an annual event in the ISU and Pocatello communities for many years, providing an opportunity to celebrate the lives of women throughout history.  For more information, please contact the Anderson Center at 282-2805 or the ISU Women’s Studies Program (282-5002).

A complete list of all of the nearly 30 events and displays for WHM 2007 can be accessed at the Anderson Center Web site at www.isu.edu/andersoncenter.