Semester of Graduation

Summer 2026

Degree

Master of Fine Arts (MFA)

Department

English

Document Type

Thesis

Abstract

“Angel of (  )”  is a collection of artist books enclosed within a box shaped as both an altar and a coffin. The books included are, in order of appearance, as follows: “After Heaven”, “Organ Confessions”, “THE MEMORY OF YOUR DEATH WHERE I AM YOU DYING AGAIN”, and “Dihescence”. This collection consists of experimental poetry, the allegorical memoir of an angel divorced from heaven, and a litany of printmaking, bookmaking, and box-making techniques. As the enclosure is opened, a triptych is revealed; beginning with the angel's descent from heaven. Heaven, a place shattered by resurfacing memories of incest, domestic abuse, and suicide. As the angel wanders our earth searching for meaning through sex and intimacy, it comes to discover not only is heaven not real, neither are angels— and that this is all an elaborate ruse constructed through the social structure of shame to prevent beings from freeing themselves from the nuclear family.

Beyond the artifice of religious metaphor, this enclosure is the place where I bury my brother who committed suicide in June of 2024. As of the time of constructing this accompanying essay, he has no headstone, no name engraved; he was cremated and buried before I saw his body, planted near the coffins of people whom I’ve never met. This coffin is crafted not for the reification of his memory (though there is love there), but rather out of necessity. A place where inside I place each nightmare as it comes to me. Though I have lost him, his belongings, and my memories of him, I have created here a physical manifestation of that absence.

Date

7-28-2026

Committee Chair

Clay, Adam

LSU Acknowledgement

1

LSU Accessibility Acknowledgment

1

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Available for download on Tuesday, July 12, 2033

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