Leela Francis ART

Last Spring I made a pilgrimage to Oaxaca (pronounced Wahaka), Mexico, a journey originally intended for Fall of 2020. It was meant to be an adventure with my 30year bff, Kara, my playmate in all things outdoorsy. Covid, and then Kara’s diagnosis of advanced stage lung cancer got in the way of that divinely inspired plan. 

 

Kara passed away in July of '21, a year after her diagnosis. Last spring, almost 2 years since losing her, I felt ready to celebrate our shared Oaxaca vision in her honor. 

 

So in March of this year I did just that. Besides awesome trekking visiting indigenous villages and silver moss forests, I also spent 10 days in Oaxaca City. Cities aren’t my thing so this was pretty out of character. But Oaxaca city is different. The texture, color and pattern that weave together in this historical urban gem so entranced me. Though I’d been there 16 years earlier, I was now a different person, carrying different memories, healing different wounds. 

 

My time in Oaxaca City found its way into my art when I got back to Spokane. Wahaka Walls & Windows is my exploration of how opportunities and obstacles are sometimes interchangeable. I've learned that loss can carve out beauty, and death reminds us how to live better. I've discovered that walls can really be windows. If you've ever lost a soul mate, you know the path to healing is baffalingly heart and gut wrenching. 

 

But there's also the beauty of the love shared that remains or perhaps even deepens and grows more dear. It is this deepening love that this series celebrates. 

 

Wahaka Walls and Windows quilts together the gift of my healing through loss and the blessings of meaningful closure.