09/08/2026
"Sanctum Amaru" by Linda Bishara
September 12 - October 11
Opening reception on Sept 12 from 4:00pm - 7:00pm
Understudy || 890 14th Street || Downtown Denver
"In 'Sanctum Amaru', I explore immortality and question the finality of death. Drawing from personal experiences with caregiving, grief and my Egyptian and Peruvian ancestry, the exhibition acts as a fictional tomb suspended in a mysterious realm between the living and the afterlife. Here in this sacred space, the dead can visit, comfort, and protect us, while the living can remember, speak to, and leave offerings for them. At its center is the benevolent Amaru, a serpent of Andean mythology who moves between realms, alongside other celestial beings who serve as guardians. Clay as a medium becomes an act of preservation and my feeble attempt at immortality, holding my fingerprints (and spirit) as evidence of a life and body that are impermanent.
'Sanctum Amaru' cannot answer what happens after we die. Instead, it offers comfort within that uncertainty. Drawing from ancient Egyptian and Incan traditions of ritual, offerings, and communion with the spiritual world, I hope visitors leave open to the possibility that the dead remain among us. Through ritual, objects, memory, and spiritual practice, we can continue to speak to them, care for them, and feel cared for in return." - Linda Bishara
