Deconstruction

Opening January 20 in Lafayette

For fourteen years, Joyce Mallonee lived with stage-four breast cancer. It metastasized to her bones, liver and lungs. She endured countless medications, treatments and surgeries – all of which left a great physical toll.

Sometimes these procedures resulted in parts of her body being removed, replaced and altered.
Joyce decided to channel her experiences with cancer into an art show called Deconstruction.

She believed her art can empower cancer survivors to tell their stories through creative expression, prompting difficult
but crucial conversations with loved ones that help both the survivors and their families deal with the disease.

Despite having studied art in college, Joyce didn’t consider herself artist and it was only after mentioning Deconstruction to her son Alex, a filmmaker, that the pair decided to pursue the concept.

For two years, the mother and son team conceptualized art pieces about the cancer’s effects on Joyce’s body and mental state while collaborating with a variety of artists to bring the pieces to life.

On October 4th, 2020 Joyce Mallonee passed away. But as they say, the show must go on…