New Chilliwack Museum exhibition invites folks to fill jars with memories

A wall of shelves lined with mason jars holding memories of Chilliwack residents has filled a section of the Chilliwack Museum.

It’s part of a public-participation exhibition at the museum called I remember… which runs until the fall.

It is an ongoing, participatory, collaborative installation aiming to foster personal recollections of life and community – and it’s curated by museum visitors. People are invited to share their personal connections with the community throughout the entirely of the exhibition.

“This exhibition is meant to be participatory,” said Sarah Belley, education and engagement coordinator at the Chilliwack Museum. “We want members of the community to share their connection to the concept of memory by crafting their own memory jars.”

Captured in glass mason jars and assembled from found objects, guests young and old are invited to craft their own connection to personal memory, while exploring the dynamic range of the collective memory within the community.

Attached to each jar is a tag on which folks, who have already participated, have written down their memories.

People can add their memories to the exhibition any time during its duration, from now until Oct. 16.

The museum is supplying everything that’s needed – jars, labels, and a wide assortment of objects for people to place in them. People can also bring their own items to place in the jars, but the museum is discouraging people from bringing sentimental items as they might not be returned.

The goal of this exhibition is to have visitors share their own memories and build a collaborative exhibition. The aim is to show that while memories are unique, there are many commonalities in our lived experience as well.

This isn’t the first time the museum has asked for the public to take part in an exhibition. Last year, they were looking for local artwork for their Creative in Quarantine show.

READ MORE: Chilliwack Museum looking for creative people to take part in COVID-related art show

The museum is open Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (open late on Thursdays until 8 p.m.), and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. More information on admissions can be found at www.chilliwackmuseum.ca. Admission is by donation until June 24, 2021.