“Am I being weird?”

My thirteen-year-old often asks this question and sometimes it’s to raise an eyebrow or incite a shake of my head. But sometimes, it seems like genuine concern. The real question is “Am I normal enough to fit in?”

My exhibit is a playful take on “weirdness,” whimsical artworks, mostly paper assemblage, housed in a multilayer shelving unit made of wooden boxes. There are various factoids throughout the shelves citing the history of the word, how it morphed into its modern definition, and inspiring quotes to encourage weirdness.

The true intent of the work is permission to be ourselves and for me and my son, and others like us, to embrace our weirdness.