Processing Memories in a Personal Museum

This week’s Substack tells the story of creating my own museum.

Substack is now so varied that it is possible to write or present just about anything—from fiction to politics, justice to injustice, poetry to photography, and topics ranging from how to read, write, or be.

I write about place immersion, cities, towns, and landscapes, and how to understand them better before planning, zoning, or attacking the issues of the day. So, it is natural that after a year in New Mexico, I would try to find a way to process my memories and find meaning in the photos I have taken and framed (see the “Framing Resurgence” posts from early May, here and here).

These several items had resided on my floor until Saturday afternoon. One reason was that I had hope some display inquiries in Santa Fe would be confirmed soon. But why wait when, in celebration of a successful move, I could create my own museum?

Here’s a quick, unpolished video peek into my personal museum project, featuring a bathroom wall dedicated to the Grand Canyon and several walls showcasing Santa Fe Style and New Mexico landscapes.

This project celebrates a year’s worth of exploration in the American Southwest, accompanied by music in the public domain. I hope it’s not too self-indulgent to share it as is.

It’s a work in progress, just like me. But at least these framed photographs are on a wall, no matter who the audience might be.

All photos— of streets, portales, trains, canyons, countryside, storms, plazas, Pueblos, churches, and museums—were taken and framed by Charles R. Wolfe, beginning in June 2024, in New Mexico and Arizona.