The Lost Ones: Finding My Ancestors Volume I: The Diary of Absence
A two-day event on Art and the Transmission of Family Histories by 2026 Creative Catalyst Grantee Val Richmond
Our “individual” history is a collective story—it is our family’s story, the story of the tribe, the people, the culture. It is the story of the land we live on. The Lost Ones:Finding My Ancestors, is a multi-volume artist’s book series, created by artist Val Richmond. A work of personal memoir, family ancestral history, and mythic imagination, Volume I tells her family’s story of an erased past and a vision of ancestral memory loss.
On Saturday, October 10, 2026, 2pm – 4pm, please join us for an artist’s talk and presentation of Volume 1, followed by a panel discussion with Bethany Parr Tronsky, LCSW and Deborah Sherman, BC-DMT, LMHC, two psychotherapists/creative workers. The panel will focus on different ways people connect with
family transmissions from past generations, including traumatic events, the resilience of our forbears, and immigrant experiences. Questions and comments will follow.
On Sunday, October 11, 2026, 2pm – 4pm, please join us for a creative arts workshop with Val Richmond and Kathy Stillson, LCSW. Kathy practices a mode of Constellation Work to prompt explorations of family histories and ancestor’s strengths. The group will be guided in these creative explorations by Val; art and
writing materials will be provided. Participants are welcome to bring copies of personal items or writing to work with, but it is not necessary to bring anything but yourself. We will have time to share as much or as little of the process and work as participants would like.
