Darkness can be heavy and frightening, the feeling of being shut out from all things familiar. The path forward is not clear, we reach out our arms in search of something to hold onto, something that can make us feel safe. But even if, while reaching into the abyss we are able to take hold of a thing, seize it, caress it and convince ourselves, it is indeed what we were so desperately searching for, we feel unmoored. 

Would if, when faced with darkness, the unknowing, we just sat, waited, until the murkiness of it all settled, the absence of something felt less scary. Bearing the abundance, we let our anxiety resolve. What potential may arise, if we were just still, patient in our convictions. Would if instead of seeking some kind of light, we planted ourselves firmly in the shadows, in the infinitude of the unknowing, until maybe, something reached out to us, or better yet, gave us time to grow. 

-Dav

Fertile darkness is a collection of work, ephemera, and indexical marks by Elizabeth Rivera

Aina Smart-Truco, Gina Rae La Cerva, Hanna-Katarina Edwards, Isabel DuBois, Jess Cheng, Margaret Seelie, Mirabelle Jones, Tamara Murphy, Tasha Bjelic.