“When you have more than you need, build a longer table.” This is the quote that Mary Beth Livers’ creative endeavor channeled with this project. Truly transforming the vintage door, this piece was displayed at the “Southport, Open Your Doors!” Artist Reception as an actual table, laid out flat and topped with plates, flatware, and baking dishes. She calls it an, “artistic representation of plants, recipes, and meals served on an impromptu dining table created to hold additional guests across time.”
Named the Hallelujah Welcome Table after the cookbook of the same name by Maya Angelou, the door (#4) was perhaps the most ‘transformed’ of all the artists in the group, turning from door to table.
The papers decoupaged to the door are all variety of stylized recipes from various parts of Southport’s history: Waccamaw-Siouan, Gullah, Colonial, Mid-20th Century, and present day. This amalgamation of cultures spanning across time shows a softer side of the resilience this project sought to shine a light on–that something as commonplace as a meal shared between friends and loved ones could, on its own, be an act of strength and triumph.
