working title: Held From Below
I work in textiles and also in movement. The theme of roots and connectedness particularly calls for this – to build something that viewers can touch. I’m also thinking about the desperate need for care at this time in the world, and how wrapping ourselves (with something soft, arms, etc) might provide a feeling of support and comfort. On a personal note, the mention of ancestry in the call is touching. I’d like to create a visceral feeling of connection to those who have passed by pulling their energy up from the earth through a conglomerate of quilted, stuffed, very long root forms (up to 6’), that would be partially buried and come upward from the ground. I’m often interested in ways viewers can directly interact with my work, so they will be touchable and a viewer might go into the middle and wrap different roots around themselves, or at least stand within them. I’m also preparing a dance event for the opening that will interact with the sculptures. Below is a first prototype!
