In my practice, there is what I think about and then there is what I do. At times there is a gap, and other times, they eclipse. That eclipse is a gesture to communicate.
What I think about revolves around egalitarian desires and the democratization of what we consider “worthy” of attention in art. I think about granting equal significance to all forms of making, no matter the motivation, as I have seen the tides shift through art history. The sacred act of creation serves many functions: it resists destruction, it connects community, it serves as a means of communication, and so much more.
I have been returning to my fiber roots, crocheting like I have done since I was a child, embroidering like my mother and sister taught me, and quilting in connection with my aunts and grandmothers. These practices carry generational and social knowledge within the fibers of their being. Prior to this return, I explored art through many different mediums and felt compelled to resist restricting myself to any single one. But as I wound my way through my confusion and lost feelings, I found grounding rather than restriction in focusing on fibers. I think of this both through the materiality and through the techniques specific to each material.
More on this idea of communication: I have been creating translation systems as ways to communicate complex ideas through abstract fiber forms. These translation systems question how and why we communicate in the first place. What I have come to is that communication is a way to bridge the gap between the self and others. So the specific text that I translate has become very important. Where do I source this text? Is it from myself or others? I have played with both as a way to investigate how different people interpret themselves as separate or together with others. We relate to each other through words. It is the primary way that we communicate how we feel and what we need. It is how we understand ourselves and make ourselves known. I have been unpacking the complexity behind something as simple as communication, if such a thing could be considered simple in the first place. There is community in learning the rules, and individuality in how we break those rules. I play in the tension between the two, and that is where I find the eclipse.