Ancestors’ Altar is a living, nondenominational community altar—an evolving installation created to honor those who’ve come before us: related or chosen, named or unnamed. Open to all, this ongoing project grows with each iteration as people add tributes of loved ones who have passed.

The next altar will take shape during the Vanport Mosaic Festival at the Historic Alberta House (May 16 - 30) and then again at the EXPO Center (May 31 - June 1), expanding over time as new images, memories, and offerings are added. You are warmly invited to participate. Submit digital photos of someone you wish to honor—family or chosen kin. If you do not have a photo, you may share an image of something that reminds you of them: a drawing, object, recipe, or note. You may also include a quality you miss, respect, or carry forward.

You’re welcome to submit one image at a time, as many times as you'd like. You do not need to attend the event to participate. All submissions will be handled with care and included in the altar.

At each installation, we gather around, offering space to sit, reflect, and be in touch with life through death—to connect with your ancestors and ours. Bring an offering. Bring your friends and family. Remember together.

Please share with your community.

Submission Form

What is the first name of the person you submitting an image of?

As you'd like it displayed, if at all.

Is there a word, phrase, or quality(ies) you miss, respect, or admire about them to be included in the installation?

Optional, but encouraged.

Do you give permission for this image and name (if shared) to be included in the public altar installations, and optionally shared on Fumi’s social media to honor your loved one?

You can say no to either—just let us know what feels right to you.

Your Name

Who is submitting - will not be included in the installation.

First Name

Last Name

Email

Where are you submiting from?

City, State, Country (optional)

** Having trouble uploading or have a question? You are welcome to contact us directly at: hi@fumiishome.com **

About the Artist

Mia Reiko Braverman is an artist, educator, and founder of Fumi, a studio and shop based in Portland, Oregon, dedicated to sensory arts and ancestral connection. With a background in the nonprofit sector and arts education, Mia’s work is rooted in creating spaces for cultural learning, community building, and honoring heritage crafts.

Her creative practice is deeply informed by her lived experiences—growing up between Hawai‘i and the Pacific Northwest, living abroad in Japan, and being a first-generation Japanese American. In 2022, she began studying traditional incense-making under master artisan Eriyo Watanabe, a relationship that continues to shape her exploration of craft as a form of cultural storytelling.

Through Fumi, Mia creates handmade incense, teaches workshops, and curates programs that invite participants to reconnect with sensory memory and place. Her projects—including Hanami Matsuri, a spring celebration of Japanese cultural traditions, and Ancestors’ Altar, an ongoing participatory installation—reflect her commitment to fostering accessible, community-rooted experiences that honor tradition while making space for shared reflection and intergenerational memory. Central to her practice is a belief in the power of intergenerational, intercultural, and inter-diaspora learning and exchange.

Mia sees incense not only as a material practice, but as a living tradition that holds history, spirituality, and everyday rituals of care. She is dedicated to honoring traditional knowledge while exploring its relevance in contemporary life, with an emphasis on collaboration, accessibility, and respect.