Chelsea Dimanche
Keys to Memory
Class of: 2028
Major: Strategic Design and Management BBA
Medium: Acrylic on canvas, Written piece
Faculty: Jess Irish, Pamela Roskin
Prompt: The assignment was to choose an object that holds a memory — or create one — and then write about it. The object could be anything: physical, emotional, or even something written, as long as it connected to a personal memory.
For this project, I chose the piano from my family’s living room as my memory object. I created Keys to Memory, an acrylic painting that represents the warmth, connection, and traditions that make home special to me.
To shape the piece, I combined personal memories with research, drawing inspiration from historical piano paintings, Degas’ The Dancing Class, and Pieter Claesz’s still lifes for their mood, movement, and warm tones. I also asked family and friends what pianos and home meant to them, which reinforced the themes of comfort, love, and stability.
Overall, this project became a way to honor the role the piano plays in my family’s story and to turn those memories into a visual expression of home.