Artist Courtney Kessel has become well known for her functional piece entitled In Balance With. Courtney is a single mom living with her nine-year-old daughter Chloé Clevenger in Athens, Ohio. She works as the Exhibition and Events Coordinator at the Dairy Barn and as a Fine Art professor at Ohio University in order to support her family. Between long days at the office and working at the gallery openings, she finds time to pack lunches, help with homework, and drive to soccer practice. In Balance With exemplifies her role as a mother and her efforts to balance work, home, and her personal life in order to make her daughter happy.
Courtney goes to wake up her daughter Chloe in a playful manner, by jumping up on her and hovering over her face.
Courtney and Chloe begin their mornings by sharing the bathroom mirror for primping.
Mother and daughter work in the kitchen to get everything prepared for the day. They cook breakfast, pack lunches, finish some last-minute homework, and sign papers for school.
Chloe nibbles on her breakfast bagel.
Instead of taking the bus, Courtney drives Chloe to school on her way to work.
While Chloe spends her day at school, Courtney works in her office at the Dairy Barn, surrounded by trinkets and crafts made by Chloe over the years. She continues an email correspondence with the artists being exhibited in the latest gallery show.
Courtney waits for her daughter to get off the school bus. Chloe gets dropped off at the Dairy Barn so she can be with her mom at work instead of being alone at the house, waiting for her mom to come home.
A stack of books from home becomes attached to Courtney’s art piece "In Balance With.” The items that are attached are things that have been part of Courtney and Chloe's life together: toys that were bought, books that were read during pregnancy, article of clothing and even Chloe's bike.
Courtney and Chloe perform "In Balance With" at the Dairy Barn. The piece is a representation of Courtney's efforts to balance all the elements in her life to ensure her daughter is happy and well cared for. She works to keep the seesaw balanced, waiting for Chloe to become satisfied and call an end to the performance.
Courtney has dinner with her boyfriend Cullen Beach after a long day at work. They discuss some issues Cullen had with Chloe. “She lied to me this morning,” he said. “She changes when she lies.” They eventually start to argue about his role in Chloe’s life.
Chloe gives Cullen a hug as he loads the dishwasher. Cullen has been living with Courtney and Chloe for more than a year and the situation can be confusing at times. Courtney says that she doesn't know if she can call herself a single mom. Cullen is clearly a big part of her and her daughter's life and he has some say in decisions, but he's also not legally bound to either of them and wouldn't have any obligations if the relationship ended.