Story Walls Responses Participate Book About

A Memento Mori for the Modern Age

Before I Die is a global art project that invites people to reflect upon their mortality and consider the things that matter most.

Journal

Walls

A collection of Before I Die walls from communities around the world.

Participate

Build a Wall

Find out how to create a Before I Die wall with your community.

Before I die I want to
forgive myself.

— from —
New Orleans, Louisiana

Before I die I want to
be accepted by my parents.

— from —
Seoul, South Korea

Before I die I want to
find grace in aging.

— from —
Belo Horizonte, Brazil

Before I die I want to
repair my relationship with my children.

— from —
New Orleans, Louisiana

Before I die I want to
be someone’s favorite.

— from —
Brooklyn, New York

Before I die I want to
slow down for a moment and maybe even stop.

— from —
Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Before I die I want to
see where my grandma grew up.

— from —
Townsville, Australia

Before I die I want to
see my son overcome addiction.

— from —
Boston, Massachusetts

Before I die I want to
be brave on the road less traveled.

— from —
Manchester, England

Before I die I want to
have solved over 100 marital issues.

— from —
Lagos, Nigeria

Before I die I want to
write a piano concerto.

— from —
Jerusalem, Israel

Before I die I want to
be someone’s cavalry.

— from —
New Orleans, Louisiana

Before I die I want to
lose this damn weight.

— from —
Brooklyn, New York

Before I die I want to
understand women.

— from —
Erfurt, Germany

Before I die I want to
find parking in this city.

— from —
Rome, Italy

Before I die I want to
enjoy waking up early.

— from —
San Francisco, California

Before I die I want to
feel that nothing was missing or left over.

— from —
Santiago, Chile

Before I die I want to
overcome my fear of flying .

— from —
Savannah, Georgia

Before I die I want to
make my mother and my country proud.

— from —
Lagos, Nigeria

Before I die I want to
be myself around others as I am by myself.

— from —
Jerusalem, Israel

Before I die I want to
meet my neighbors.

— from —
Chicago, Illinois

Before I die I want to
face death bravely.

— from —
Shanghai, China

Before I die I want to
see a just society.

— from —
Madrid, Spain

Before I die I want to
ride a bike around this island.

— from —
Chung-Li, Taiwan

Before I die I want to
abandon all insecurities.

— from —
New Orleans, Louisiana

Before I die I want to
bring peace of mind to my mom.

— from —
Brooklyn, New York

Before I die I want to
have my own theme song.

— from —
Johannesburg, South Africa

Before I die I want to
repair my broken heart.

— from —
Lisbon, Portugal

Before I die I want to
give away everything I own.

— from —
Montreal, Canada

Before I Die is a global art project that invites people to reflect on death and share their personal aspirations in public. Originally created by Candy Chang in New Orleans after the death of a loved one, there are now over 5,000 walls around the world.