Places of the Heart

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Places of the Heart Philosophy

Welcome | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | Credits

If we’re lucky, we each have a place near home that’s special, even sacred. It’s where we go for inspiration and meditation, connection and reflection, safety and peace. It’s where we find good conversation, a breathtaking view, a comforting face or a mean batch of tamales. Through the Places of the Heart exhibit, the Flagstaff public maps their community in terms of these landmarks. Using visual art and creative writing, they share what makes their home place so meaningful to them. This exhibit is open to all ages and backgrounds. It is based on the idea that art, place, and civic involvement are not separate spheres, but parts of a healthy whole that belongs to us all.

2002 Exhibition

The 2002 Places project began with a lecture by Dr. Doug Aberley, author of Boundaries of Home, Mapping for Local Empowerment. Working primarily with first nation communities in British Columbia, Aberley also consults with communities all over the world. He helps locals create bioregional maps of their places, calling them “viable” maps—perhaps even more viable than the “official” maps that we are used to seeing.

Places of the Heart uses art and writing to create such a map for Flagstaff. This year of the exhibit marked the first step in a search for a vision of community that comes from the community members themselves, a record of the Flagstaff that locals know personally. The participants in the first Places exhibits were as diverse as the locations they honored, and a wonderful variety of perspectives were included in the show. The artwork and writing in Places of the Heart embodied the collective vision and treasured individual experiences of those who call this place home.

The exhibit’s opening celebration included lectures by David Taylor, Gioia Woods, and Gary Nabhan, as well as readings by exhibit participants. It also featured a hand-painted “community map,” on which were plotted all of the places that exhibit participants told us were special through the exhibit’s artwork and writing.

Click here to read Connie Taylor's article on Places of the Heart (Flagstaff Live! 2002).

Follow the links below to view the people and places that made up the 2002 exhibition:

Stewart Aitchison
Forest Surrounding Flagstaff (Photo / Prose)

Jeane Spada-Allgood
Keyhole Sink Trail, near Parks (Photo / Prose)

Sharon Auberle
Valley Off Bearjaw/Abineau Trail (Illustration / Prose)

Carolyn Batchelor
Yellow House, Kendrick Street, Westside (Illustration / Prose)

Tom Bean & Susan Lamb
Fay Canyon, a Tributary of Walnut Canyon (Photo / Collage / Poetry)

Clifton Beck
My House, Doney Park (Illustration / Poetry)

Tish Bogan-Ozmun
Continental Valley, near Walnut Canyon (Photo / Prose)

Devyn Bonatus
My Room, Westside (Illustration / Prose)

Anne Higgins & Dan Boone
Morning Glory Caf�, Southside (Photo / Poetry)

Dee Brewer
Colorado River, Grand Canyon (Photo / Prose)

Connor Broyles
Jay Lively Activity Center (Photo / Poetry)

Nicole Campbell
Ponderosa Dance Studio, NAU (Illustration / Poetry)

Anastacia M. Cody
My Basketball Court (Illustration / Prose)

Becky Daggett
McMillan Mesa (Photo / Prose)

Callie Davis
My Trail, Forest surrounding Flagstaff (Illustration / Poetry)

Alex Dickman
Flagstaff Athletic Club East (Photo / Prose)

Katie Finney
Baseball Field, Flagstaff Middle School (Collage / Prose)

Ariel Fisher
Lake Elaine (Illustration / Prose)

Cameron J. Ful�
Switzer Mesa (Illustration / Prose)

Elizabeth Gallegos
Flagstaff Mall (Illustration / Prose)

Halie Gardiner
My Sacred Place (Illustration)

Sean Loritz
My Sacred Place (Illustration)

Charlie Moody
My Sacred Place (Illustration)

Hilary & Pete Giovale
My Living Room, Leroux Street, Westside (Collage / Poetry)

Tyler Glassman
My Bedroom, Cheshire (Illustration / Poetry)

Sherry Golden
Prairie Dog Colony, Fort Valley (Photo / Prose)

Kathryn Greenwald
Hart Prairie (Illustration / Prose)

Jordan Hakes
My Backyard, Westside (Illustration / Poetry)

Tim Haran
Walnut Canyon (Photo / Prose)

Richard E. Helm
Turkey Hills, East of Flagstaff (Photo / Prose)

Cynthia Herron
Patch of Grass, near Wupatki (Photo / Poetry)

Dusty Hiles
Watershed of the Grand Canyon (Photo / Poetry)

Zach Hoague
My Fort, the Woods, near Cheshire (Illustration / Prose)

Sarah Holdsworth
Hart Prairie, San Francisco Peaks (Illustration / Photo)

Ren� Horne
My Sacred Place (Illustration)

Lauren Mueller
My Sacred Place (Illustration)

Marco Bifano
My Sacred Place (Illustration)

Eugenia Horstman
Lockett Meadow (Illustration / Photo)

Laura Houdek
Basketball Court, University Heights (Illustration / Prose)

Trish Jahnke
Fox Rocks Canyon, Rio de Flag (Photo / Collage / Prose)

Emily Anne Jones
My Alley, Northside (Illustration / Prose)

Fran Joseph
Lake Mary (Illustration / Poetry)

Crystal Joyce
Basketball Court, Recreation Center, NAU (Illustration / Poetry)

Derek Kindsvater
San Francisco Peaks (Photo / Prose)

Guthrie King
Fat Man's Loop, Mount Elden (Photo / Prose)

Andi Kleinman
Watchable Wildlife Trail, Kendrick Park (Collage / Prose)

Isabelle A. Kleinman
McPherson Park (Photo / Poetry)

Isabelle A. Kleinman
My House, Northside (Photo / Poetry)

Angie Krall
Alligator Juniper, Fat Man's Loop, Mount Elden (Photo / Poetry)

Ann Kramer
Hart Prairie (Photo / Poetry)

Ella Kunkel
My Sacred Place (Illustration)

Cody Shinaman
My Sacred Place (Illustration)

Jake Highline
My Sacred Place (Illustration)

Alex Yarbrough
Snowbowl (Illustration / Poetry)

Torrey Larson
Soccer Field, near NAU (Illustration / Prose)

Landon Leisek
My Baseball Field (Illustration / Prose)

Stephanie Lin
My Sacred Place (Illustration)

Bear McKusik
My Sacred Place (Illustration)

Svea Conrad
My Sacred Place (Illustration)

Cole Loughrey
Keyhole Sink Trail, near Parks (Illustration / Prose)

Nikole Luebbe
Walnut Canyon (Illustration / Prose)

Christian B. Luginbuhl
The sky, above Flagstaff (Photo / Poetry)

Francesca Markus
Grand Falls (Photo / Prose)

Katie Matthias
Flagstaff Urban Trail (Illustration / Prose)

Betsy McKellar
Walnut Canyon (Photo / Poetry)

Ariel Mierendorf
Arizona Music Pro (Illustration / Prose)

Michelle Miller
Arizona Daily Sun Offices, Downtown (Photo / Poetry)

Guinevere Morgan
Claire's, Flagstaff Mall (Photo / Prose)

Brandon Oberhardt
A-1 Mountain (Photo / Prose)

Mary Oelschlager
My Backyard, Continental (Illustration / Prose)

Max Oelschlager
San Francisco Peaks (Photo / Prose)

Lea Jane Parker
San Francisco Peaks (Photo / Prose)

Ali Patrick
Buffalo Park (Photo / Poetry)

Tina Poley
Keyhole Sink Trail, Near Parks (Illustration / Prose)

Chlo� Porter
My Hogan (Photo / Prose)

Derek Big-Powers
My Sacred Place (Illustration)

Thommy Knoles
My Sacred Place (Illustration)

Caleb Richner
My Sacred Place (Illustration)

Patrick & Zia Pynes
San Francisco Peaks (Illustration / Prose)

Amy Reece
My Sacred Place (Illustration / Poetry)

Sharon J. Richards
Nature Surrounding Flagstaff (Illustration / Poetry)

Alix Riggs
Children's Area, Flagstaff Public Library (Illustration / Prose)

Brad Roensch
My Trail, Forest Surrounding Flagstaff (Illustration / Poetry)

Katrina S. Rogers
Forest, Near Dry Lake (Photo / Collage / Poetry)

Roberta Rogers
Old Main, NAU (Illustration / Prose)

Roberta Rogers
El Charro Caf�, Southside (Illustration / Prose)

Roberta Rogers
Frances Short Memorial Pond, Westside (Illustration / Prose)

Roberta Rogers
Federated Community Church, Westside (Illustration / Prose)

Kathee Rose
My House, Sunset Crater (Photo / Prose)

Laura Rose
Fence, on Lake Mary Road (Photo / Poetry)

Jean Rukkila
Macy's, Southside (Illustration / Poetry)

Norma Russell Sheff
Bellemont (Photo / Poetry)

Raquel Ann Sanchez
Forest, Montessori School of Flagstaff, Switzer Mesa (Illustration / Prose)

Roanna Shebala
San Francisco Peaks (Collage / Poetry)

Dancy Sheff
The Reservation (Illustration / Poetry)

Linda Sherman
MacMillan Mesa (Illustration / Prose)

Rebecca LePage & Linda Sherman
Buffalo Park (Illustration / Prose)

Robyn Slayton-Martin
San Francisco Peaks (Illustration / Poetry)

Colin Sobek
My House, Doney Park (Illustration / Prose)

John Spencer
Waterline Road, South Side of the Inner Basin (Illustration / Poetry)

Mary Sojourner
Buffalo Park (Collage / Prose)

Huckleberry Ginesta-Goldberg
My Sacred Place (Illustration)

Mignon Hanks
My Sacred Place (Illustration)

Alison Catlin
My Sacred Place (Illustration)

Fred Solop
Flagstaff (Macy's, Theatrikos / Doris Harper-White Community Playhouse) (Illustration / Prose)

Hanna Spence-Schehr
My Spot, Mount Elden (Illustration / Prose)

Rosanda Suetopka
My House, Hotevilla (Photo / Prose)

Megan Summers
Rock Wall, Doney Park (Illustration / Prose)

Connie Taylor
Buffalo Park (Photo / Prose)

David Taylor
Prairie Grass, Brannigan Park (Collage / Poetry)

Kory MacKaye Taylor
Brannigan Park (Illustration / Poetry)

Jim Thomas
Hart Prairie (Illustration / Poetry)

Jim Thomas
San Francisco Peaks (Illustration / Poetry)

Jim Thomas
Hopi Point, Grand Canyon (Illustration / Poetry)

Jim Thomas
McMillan Mesa (Illustration / Poetry)

Jim Thomas
Deadman Wash, West of Wupatki (Illustration / Poetry)

Alec Tippett
My Backyard, Eastside (Illustration / Poetry)

Linda Taft Walburn
My Backyard, Continental (Photo / Poetry)

Ann Weiler Walka
San Francisco Peaks / Hart Prairie (Illustration / Poetry)

Ann Weiler Walka
Rio de Flag Canyon (Illustration / Poetry)

Ann Weiler Walka
Observatory Mesa (Illustration / Poetry)

Elisa Wiedeman & Kathy Willis
Lockett Meadow (Photo / Poetry)

Kylie Wilson
Forest, Montessori School of Flagstaff, Switzer Mesa (Illustration / Poetry)

Aaron Solop Wonders
San Francisco Peaks / Macy's / Starlite Lanes (Illustration / Prose)

Nancy Wonders
Theatrikos / Doris Harper-White Community Playhouse (Illustration / Prose)

Megan Elizabeth Wright
My house, Continental (Illustration / Prose)

Somana Suetopka Yaiva
So'oh's (Grandmother's) House, Hotevilla (Photo / Prose)

Welcome | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | Credits

2003 Exhibition

The exhibit featured new pieces and places along with some old favorites. A major highlight was the fantastic wall sized mural, “Dance of the Enlightenment” by Shonto Begay and community volunteers! Also this year, several participants contributed to a community photo collage, which united individual favorite places into an artfully combined whole.

This was the year that Places went from a one-time event to an annual tradition! The exhibit was carried on by NAU’s Program in Community, Culture and Environment and Master of Liberal Studies Program.

Follow the links below to view the people and places that made up the 2003 exhibition:

Dee W. Brewer
Grand Falls (Photo / Poetry)

Ashley Christopher
Downtown (Late for the Train) (Illustration / Prose)

Katelyn Cordasco
Wheeler Park (Illustration / Prose)

Linda Evans
Lamar Haines Memorial Wildlife Area, near Snowbowl (Photo / Prose / Poetry)

Megan Gale
My Park, near the Skating Rink (Illustration / Prose)

Patrick Garcia
Wetlands, Kachina Village (Illustration / Prose)

Jessica Garduno
Sinagua Softball Field (Illustration / Prose)

Isabelle Gosar
My Fall, the Forest (Illustration / Prose)

Kathryn Greenwald
My Backyard, McMillan Mesa (Illustration / Prose)

Mariah Hartin
Thorpe Park (Illustration / Prose)

Matt Herrman
Old Town Spring, Westside (Photo / Poetry)

Cynthia Herron
My Backyard, Westside (Illustration / Poetry)

Stephanie Johnson
San Francisco Peaks (Illustration / Poetry)

Paul Jones
Old Town Spring, Westside (Photo / Prose)

Fran Joseph & Mary Oliver
Lake Mary Road (Illustration / Poetry)

Susan Lamb
The "Cheshire Oasis," along Rio de Flag (Photo / Prose)

Marcia & Dave Lamkin
Vacant Lot, near Flagstaff (Photo / Prose)

Rosemary Logan
Boobie Hill, Hart Prairie (Illustration / Prose)

Vickie Loskota
San Francisco Peaks (Illustration / Prose)

Jordan McDermed
Bushmaster Park (Illustration / Prose)

Erin McElfresh
The Arizona Trail (Photo / Prose)

Michelle Mohrweis
The Arizona Trail (Photo / Prose)

Brenda Mooney
Downtown Flagstaff (Babbitt's, Charly's, Macy's, La Bellavia, McGaugh's) (Collage / Prose)

Jane Newbold
Snowbowl (Illustration / Prose)

Alaina Ott
My Trail, near Flagstaff (Photo / Poetry)

Ali Patrick
Mountains, West of Flagstaff (Photo / Collage / Poetry)

Alice Rosalez
Our Lady of Guadalupe Chapel, Southside (Photo / Prose)

Dale Shewalter
The Arizona Trail (Photo / Poetry)

Samantha Soto
Lake Mary Park (Drawing / Prose)

Laura Rose Taylor
The Round Pen, My Barn (Photo / Poetry)

Tara Taylor
Montessori School of Flagstaff, Switzer Mesa (Photo / Poetry)

Rhonda Thomas
My Mountain (Photo / Poetry)

Rebecca Van Ness
Bushmaster Park (Illustration / Prose)

Welcome | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | Credits

2004 Exhibition

This year, visitors to the show could mark their “places of the heart” on an interactive community map. They used stickers, markers, and other art supplies to embellish an enlarged aerial photo of the city. It was great to see friends and neighbors – some had been strangers moments before – gathered around the map, pointing out the places they loved. They shared stories and got creative in how they decorated their favorite spots. It was Places of the Heart, live.

The exhibit itself featured three-dimensional works of art for the first time in Places history. These included expressions in sculpture, jewelry, cloth, glass, and handmade books. Like their two-dimensional counterparts in photography, drawing, painting, and collage, these works were place-based and complimented by creative writing.

Dr. Sandra Lubarsky spoke at the opening reception, reminding us why a discussion of beauty is important to any discussion of place. Participants in the exhibit also read from their literary work as their visual art was projected onto a screen. The Heart of Flagstaff, a collection of essays on Flagstaff by local writers, published by the Friends of Flagstaff’s Future, was available for sale at the exhibit opening. The stained glass window that graced the book’s cover was also displayed in the exhibit.

The 2004 Places of the Heart and the creation of this website was made possible by a grant from GeoFund. Places of the Heart is presented by the Program in Community, Culture and Environment at Northern Arizona University with support from NAU’s Master of Liberal Studies Program.

Follow the links below to view the people and places that made up the 2004 exhibition:

Sharon Auberle
Oak Tree, near My Front Door (Photo / Poetry / Prose)

Sharon Auberle
Lake, Old Walnut Canyon Road (Photo / Prose)

Carolyn Batchelor
Bridge, Wheeler Park (Illustration / Prose)

Martha Blue
Wupatki (Book)

Martha Blue
Wupatki (Book)

Martha Blue
Wupatki (Book)

Ann Brown
Biking Trails, Fort Valley (Illustration / Prose)

Roberta Dawson
San Francisco Peaks (Illustration / Poetry)

Janice Dixon
The Forest, around Flagstaff (Illustration / Prose)

Bridget Doyle
The I-17 Corridor (Illustration / Prose)

Linda Evans
Lamar Haines Memorial Wildlife Area, near Snowbowl (Collage / Prose)

Heather Green
San Francisco Peaks (Photo / Prose)

Tim Haran
Coconino Forest (Photo / Prose)

Carolyn Hink
My Pond, along Flagstaff Urban Trail (Illustration / Poetry)

James Hoey
Corner of Route 66 and San Francisco Street (Photo / Prose)

James Hoey
Heritage Square (Photo / Prose)

James Hoey
Mars Hill (Photo / Prose)

Eugenia Horstman
The Painted Desert Overlook (Illustration / Prose)

Eugenia Horstman
The Chinle Formation (Illustration / Prose)

Eugenia Horstman
Hart Prairie (Illustration / Prose)

Andi Kleinman
About Memories & More, Eastside (Book)

Robin Koger
Church of the Nativity (Illustration / Poetry)

Marsha Owen
Field, along Soliere (Photo / Prose)

Lea Jane Parker
My Aspen Grove, San Francisco Peaks (Photo / Poetry)

David Ramirez
My Closet, My House, near NAU (Photo / Sculpture)

Karen Raskin-Young
The Arboretum at Flagstaff (Illustration / Prose)

Sharon Richards
Pine Trees, My Yard (Object / Poem)

Jean Rukkila
Downtown Flagstaff (Mogollon, Joe's Place, Charly's) (Book)

Jean Rukkila
Downtown Flagstaff (Book)

Jean Rukkila
Downtown Flagstaff (Book)

Jean Rukkila
Downtown Flagstaff (Book)

Jacob Sakin
Mount Elden (Photo / Prose)

Linda Sherman
Flagstaff Pioneer Museum (Illustration / Prose)

Robyn Slayton-Martin
San Francisco Peaks (Illustration / Prose)

Brenda Stengel
San Francisco Peaks (Illustration / Prose)

Melanie Street
Flagstaff (The Peaks, Pine, Aspen, Coffee) (Object / Prose)

Dennis Tomko
Harold S. Colton Research Center, Museum of Northern AZ (Photo / Prose)

Elisa Wiedeman
Arizona Riparian Ares (Illustration / Prose)

Sharan Winnicki
Nature, surrounding Flagstaff (Illustration / Prose)

Meredith Caroline Young
Museum of Northern Arizona (Photo / Prose)

Welcome | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | Credits

2005 Exhibition

Follow the links below to view the people and places that made up the 2005 exhibition:

Welcome | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | Credits

Thank You!

Over the years, these individuals, organizations, and businesses have contributed to the presentation of the Places of the Heart exhibit. Thank you so much for helping to bring this project to life:

Alan Petersen
Albertson’s
Amy Lewis
Andi Kleinman
Arizona Daily Sun
Becky Daggett and Friends of Flagstaff’s Future
Betsey Bruner
Canyon Movement Company
Carol Cooper
Cheryl Brock and Flagstaff Cultural Partners
City of Flagstaff GIS
Coconino County Board of Supervisors: Supervisor Liz Archuleta, Supervisor Matt Ryan
Connie Taylor
Darcy Falk
David Ramirez
David Taylor
Flagstaff Live!
Frances B. McAllister
Gary Nabhan
GeoFund
Gina Lombardo
Gioia Woods
Grand Canyon Trust
KNAZ TV, Channel 2
Jason Robinson
John Hutchison
Jillian Asplund
Jim Loper
Ivy Hutchison
Max Oelschlaeger
Merrie Heath
Mountain Living Magazine
Northern Arizona Building Association
NAU Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
NAU Department of Geography and Public Planning
NAU Master of Liberal Studies Program
Rachel Mason
Rachel Wilson
Raechel Running
Randi Axler
Renee Cardon Wallace
Sandra Lubarsky
Steve Willis
Shonto Begay
Tamara Ramirez
Verde Watershed Research and Education Program
Visible Difference

Site Credits

Deepest gratitude to Jason Robinson for working with Tamara on yet another huge and unruly project. Thanks to Jason for the time, blood, sweat, tears, and talent he put into this website! Thanks to all those who helped him create the Places pages: Ivy Hutchison, John Hutchison, Rachel Mason. Special thanks to GeoFund for sponsoring the creation of the Places of the Heart online digital archive.

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