Kaitlyn Pietras, queer Jewish grief worker and visual artist in Los Angeles

RITUAL, GRIEF & ART

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RITUAL, GRIEF & ART 〰️

RITUAL, GRIEF & ART

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RITUAL, GRIEF & ART 〰️

RITUAL, GRIEF & ART FOR THE DEATH CURIOUS

(a)Wake is a studio practice exploring grief through ritual, art, and community.

Hello! I’m Kaitlyn Pietras, a queer Jewish grief worker and visual artist based in Los Angeles. (a)Wake is where those practices meet, shaped by years of grief witnessing, ritual work, and community care.

At the heart of (a)Wake is the Living Funeral Ceremony, a communal ritual that invites participants to die before they die, to let go of what no longer serves, and remember what it means to be fully alive. This practice also takes shape through workshops and gatherings that honor both the living and the dead with care and intention.

Through writing and visual art, (a)Wake explores grief as an ongoing creative practice. At its core is the belief that grief has the capacity to reconnect us with what matters most.

(a)Wake offerings

  • reflection

    “I didnt know at all what to expect from a Living Funeral. I imagined I'd face some fears, feel grief for very dear ones I'd lost, or perhaps feel nothing at all. But the reality of the experience was so much more expansive and loving than I ever could have imagined. It was both somatic and spiritual, physical and transcendent. Kaitlyn created such a magical, grounded space with just the right balance of guidance and supported, meditative, wandering. I left elated and transformed, telling all my friends that slowly, mindfully dipping into the sensations of the journey of death was the absolute best way to spend a Saturday afternoon.” -M.W.