Turning ashes into artwork

April 9, 2008

Have you been wondering what to do with the cremated remains of a loved one?

This is the question posed by Phoenix Memorial Art, a new Bethesda company that urges you to reconsider your plans for dispersal of ashes.

Instead, they propose, set some aside and have them made into an original work of art by one of Phoenix’s affiliated artists. This way, Phoenix assures you, memories of your loved one can come alive again through art, the same way a phoenix rises from the ashes.

That’s what Phoenix founder Marjorie Hoachlander and her late husband, Eldon, chose to do with a portion of his remains. Now Marjorie has a piece of Eldon - literally - in seven original artworks.

From the release:

“Cremains are emotional material,” explains ceramic artist Catherine White, who hand-built a beautiful vessel for the Hoachlander collection. “I feel a great respect and responsibility as I work with each piece and allow its unique personality to emerge. When adding cremains to the clay, I become aware of the textural effects of the ashes as the object forms.”

Phoenix’s advisory board includes a doctor of anthropology at UMD; a doctor of psychology at Hood College; and the rector of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Chevy Chase, Maryland.

How about it: a meaningful alternative to a traditional urn, or too offbeat?

I’d want design approval pre-mortem; can you imagine being part of a work of art you disliked?

JACKIE SAUTER, Web Editor

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Posted by Jackie Sauter | Filed Under business, montgomery county, university of maryland 

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