A Letter to LulaBelle

a conversation on women's stories and lives

Playing in Trees Embroidery & Photograph by Lyn Swett Miller

Hello my Friends!

Letters to LulaBelle is a group show currently on view at AVA Gallery & Art Center in Lebanon, NH.

LulaBelle, the Mannequin & Friends Photograph by Lyn Swett Miller

It is a collaborative conversation on women’s stories and lives in honor of Women’s History Month.

The Colors of Us Photograph by Lyn Swett Miller

LulaBelle could be your grandmother, sister, a mannequin, an imaginary friend, or the unknown woman who wore your wedding dress before you.

A Memoir in Stitches with Self Portraits Photograph by Lyn Swett Miller

She is all of us and none of us.¹

A Grandmother’s Trousseau, 1882 Photograph by Lyn Swett Miller

When I first imagined this show, it was quite vague: I invited women artists with studios at AVA to join me for Women’s History Month in Gallery 3. It was an open invitation.

In Honor of Full Life Photograph by Lyn Swett Miller

When we hung the show, this open-ended call revealed a dynamic, multi-media conversation about lineage, creativity, adornment, feminism, expectations and our relationships to each other.²

A Conversation on Feminism Photograph by Lyn Swett Miller

As you know, my wedding dress has become a portal to the lives of women who made mine possible. Along the way, I’ve discovered some things about myself as well. As the name of the show implies, this is a place to write your own letter to LulaBelle, whoever she may be.

A Place to Share YOUR Letter to LulaBelle Photograph by Lyn Swett Miller

A few weeks in, and this wall is now populated with notes, large and small. Here’s part of what I wrote to LulaBelle:

My Mother in Her Wedding Dress Photograph by Lyn Swett Miller

Dear LulaBelle,

I’ll never forget when we first met. You were at the top of the stairs at Who is Sylvia, the vintage clothing store in Woodstock, VT. It was 1991, a year before my wedding.

I had always thought I’d wear the ‘family dress’ that my mother wore, but my cousins wouldn’t let me - - I was too small - - and I guess the only place to find a wedding dress in the Upper Valley was Who is Sylvia (the store no longer exists).

Me, Wearing LulaBelle’s Dress Photograph by Lyn Swett Miller

You were almost a perfect fit…A local costume designer, who’s name escapes me, reworked the lace to make room for my shoulders, which I guess were broader than yours. After our wedding we danced to jazz under a tent in my parent’s field and drove away in a Model T. I’ve always wondered if your wedding was in a field too.

Coming Out for Air Photograph by Lyn Swett Miller

And then you sat in a box in my parent’s attic and then our attic…for decades. Until…Until you expressed a need for air…and then wanted to be decorated with a story…my story, but yours as well.

A Memoir in Stitches Photograph by Lyn Swett Miller

Since wearing our dress again, and holding the fabric in my hands as I embroider, I have created a story about you and your journey north to marry the man your parents called “that damn yankee.” I think you had imagined wearing your family wedding dress as well, but didn’t, because your family was not happy about your choice.3

Little Girl in Big Woods Photograph by Lyn Swett Miller

How often does that happen, LulaBelle - - these judgements about our choices? Why not climb a tree, walk alone in the woods4 or hang out unclothed in the third floor of a former Overalls Factory?5

Emerging From the Sprague River, ME Self Portrait 2025

Perhaps it was this spirit of abandon that guided my renewed curiosity about self-portraiture. What would happen to me and perhaps to you, when we danced on lava, swam in a tidal river or hung out in the woods in the snow?

Connecting With Earth Photographs by Lyn Swett Miller

During this time I guided a series of photography practice groups in which we explored how objects can be portals to our most elemental selves. In our case, our relationship intensified each time we played.

She’s Here, In the Trees Self Portrait 2026

Even though I never knew you, we are kin - - you and I, and all women, really. Our collective joys and challenges weave together, embedding themselves in the objects we love, some of which we make, and some of which just show up.

Hands on Dress, Maine Photograph by Lyn Swett Miller

I’m running out of room, so better bring this to a close. I just wanted to let you know how grateful I am to you and to your family for sharing your dress with me. Thank you.

With love, Lyn

Sunrise Snow Self Portrait 2026

And at our core, as we consider Women’s History Month and all those who have made our lives possible, a seed, a flower, a star…you decide.

At the Core Embroidery & Photograph by Lyn Swett Miller

With gratitude for you being you,

Lyn

Lilly This Week Photograph by Lyn Swett Miller

Compost This Week Photograph by Lyn Swett Miller

The show at in Gallery 3 at AVA ends April 6. If you happen to be in the Upper Connecticut River Valley between now and then, please stop by. I might just be there writing, embroidering, or just hanging out with LulaBelle and friends. Also:

Friday, March 20, 10am - noon: Embroider with Lyn & LulaBelle (BYO)

Thursday, March 26, 11am - 1pm: Prompt-based Writing Circle with Lyn & LulaBelle

Lilly Pleading for More Fetch Photograph by Lyn Swett Miller

1. The name for this show came out of an informal conversation with other artists at AVA, including Rachel Jordan who has had a studio at AVA since its founding over 40 years ago. She is now the ‘keeper’ of LulaBelle the mannequin, who has also been at AVA during its entire history. When she mentioned the mannequin and her name, it just seemed right to have the show focus on her and one of Rachels’ paintings that includes her.

2. The work in this show was produced by the following artists: Paulette Werger (jewellry), Helen Shulman (oil painting), Maggie “mayfly” Kundtz Joseph (photography), Lisa Solbert Sheldon (Assemblage honoring her mother), Rachel Jordan (oil painting of LulaBelle), Julie Puttgen (altered books), Anne Wilson (ancestral dresses) & me.

3. Back in 2019 I worked with fellow AVA studio artist Julie Puttgen who introduced me to the joys of re-imagining garments by cultivating a relationship with them. At that time, I played around with a dress my sister wore to the 1978 Baltimore Cotillion and which I wore to a big dance in New York City in 1984. This time, though, you called for attention.

4. This scene was originally captured by my father, Steven C. Swett, when we were adventuring in Baxter State Park in 1971. I was five and a half at the time. He also created the original black and white photographs of me sitting in a tree when I was about two and a half and of me swinging from another tree when I was about ten. I traced these images and then transcribed them to the dress.

5. There was some discussion about whether or not we should ‘dress’ LulaBelle, the mannequin. We agreed she was best the way she is, especially with her hat.