Hello! I’m Kaitlyn Pietras, a Los Angeles based queer Jewish grief worker and visual artist. (a)Wake is my studio practice born from years of grief witnessing, ritual work, and community care.

BACKGROUND & TRAINING

My background is in live performance design, with training in architecture and an MFA from UCLA. My work has been presented at large-scale institutions such as the Metropolitan Opera, as well as site-specific and experimental spaces. Through this practice I’ve learned how space can hold what words cannot, shaping rituals that are felt emotionally, spiritually, and somatically.

Previously, I served as Curator and Director of Programming at Studio DDLA, a death-centered art gallery and community space in Los Angeles. There, I developed and facilitated programming that explored grief & mortality and curated dozens of events featuring local artists, healers, and community leaders.

I received my Death Doula certification from Jill Schock at Death Doula LA and completed the Deeper Deathwork intensive with DeathWives, with a focus on end-of-life care and grief studies. I also have training in grief-informed herbalism and sound healing.

MY PRACTICE

At the heart of (a)Wake is the Living Funeral Ceremony, a communal ritual that invites participants to cross a threshold into new life. Each ceremony is crafted in relationship with season, place, and collective intention. I trained directly with Emily Cross of Steady Waves Center, who developed this ceremony drawing from living funerals first practiced in South Korea.

Alongside this work, I offer personal grief rituals and serve as a funeral celebrant, creating ceremonies and gatherings that honor both the living and the dead.

COMMUNITY WORK

Because grief never happens outside of community, my work also extends beyond one on one practice. I serve on the board of LA Queer Coalition, a network of queer leaders supporting safety, care, and collective wellbeing across Los Angeles through events, workshops, and shared community resources. I also facilitate a monthly Queer Grief Circle in East Hollywood at the WuuM.

RITUAL & ART

Artistic work and ceremonial practice often intersect in my process. A spell I wrote, inspired by the Jewish ritual of Tashlikh, is featured in Grieving as Shapeshifting: Spells for Coming Undone. I'm also a contributing artist in The Rebis Vol. 2: Chariot, with artwork featured in the Jewish Zine Archive's Omnibus.

My grief zine, Mourning Field Notes, is a seasonal companion for those moving through loss. Organized around the rhythms of the year, it weaves together fragments of writing, esoteric associations, rituals, and reflections that invite an ongoing relationship with grief.

Writing is another element of this work. Most recently, I explored embracing the cycles of nature during the season of dying in my TalkDeath article, "Embracing the Season of Dying."

My studio practice draws inspiration from the Jewish ancestral calendar, exploring how seasonal ritual, art, and ancestral time shape the ways we mourn, remember, and renew.