Anna Lentz
The Mudroom from the “At Home” Series (May 2020)
watercolor, ink, digital drawing,
8 x 8 in.
$80
“As my days are saturated by these spaces, I find myself reflecting on all of the activities, emotions, and experiences that unfold there. I am grateful to have a place that holds them so well.
The kitchen is always full of activities: cooking, playing soccer with tennis balls, dancing, crafting, playing board games, starting plants from seeds, and dyeing with plants. For that reason it is always messy and dirty. In fall there are oak leaves floating about. In summer, loads of spiders hang.
I have been taking extra-long morning showers in this bathroom. In the absence of having the pressure of work, I have lengthened my shower time, but also I have found showers to be pretty therapeutic in managing stress. I just want to stay for one more minute.
We go through the gauntlet of the mudroom, a transitional space, that is almost always muddy, dirty, in a state of disarray, and scattered with a variety of shoes, sandals, and muck boots. I will periodically tear through the mudroom, shifting, reorganizing, and tidying, but it inevitably uncoils into a tripping hazard. It’s here that snow drips off boots, mud dries on shoes, and we wipe Lucy’s paws.”
© Ann Lentz