What if we told you that she’s having a conversation with Anaïs Nin right now?

This story is part of Image issue 12, “Commitment,” where we explore why Los Angeles is the land of true believers. But Maciel Antunes’ relationship with Nin crystallized on New Year’s Day 2019, when she went looking for a new home with her husband in Sierra Madre Canyon. Nin’s exact address in Sierra Madre, “was also my brand-new address.” Her encounters with Nin no longer felt like mere coincidences. The shift went from “‘I’m a fan” to “I’m in dialogue with this woman.” Nin became “a significant mentor.” A letter to Anaïs Nin, from “The Trapeze Project.” Today, Maciel Antunes speaks with Nin through various means: through her art, through letters. During one of her walks in Sierra Madre, Maciel Antunes found a bird cage and accepted it as a “gift” from Anaïs Nin.