Riverside, IL

Riverside Arts Center - Back Fence
32 East Quincy Street
Riverside, IL

Hillary Johnson
The Listening Fence

The Listening Fence is an evolving, participatory outdoor installation that invites the public into a shared act of remembrance, reflection, and reciprocity. Installed across the back fence of the Riverside Arts Center's sculpture garden, the work weaves together ephemeral materials—handmade paper, thread, image, wind, and intention—with community participation and poetic ritual. The Listening Fence consists of a series of paper strips handmade by the artist using natural fibers and dyes, tied with thread, gathered along the rear fence. These “whispers”—short reflections, prayers, or messages—are created by the public in response to a simple invitation: What would you like to release, remember, or offer to the world? Visitors may leave their messages in a small drop-box or write and contribute directly by tying them to the hanging cords. Over time, these paper pieces weather, fade, and dissolve, an intentional and poetic element of the work —honoring the cycles of impermanence, care, and quiet presence. Threads connecting the messages weave between fence slats, creating a luminous, living portal of collective breath.

https://www.hillaryjohnsonphoto.com

https://www.riversideartscenter.com/freearksculpturegarden/2025/10/hillary/johnson/terrain/biennial

@riversideartscenter