I, Land, 2019-2020

I,Land is a hand felted work in which I explored memory, comfort and protection. It is fully wearable and portable, but also can be used as objects to support and create space for meditation. It is comprised of: Protective Comfort Land Cape (PCLC), Introspective Thought and Memory Sourcing Headpiece (ITMSH), Camouflage Light-Step Producing Shin Guards (CLSPSG), and the Portable Nostalgia-Curing Meditation Seat (PNCMS).

Each piece was crafted with hand dyed wool that was felted into landscape inspired forms. These forms complete a fully wearable theatrical garment to create a place for meditation and privacy for the wearer. The dramatic visuals help create a magic aura around the wearer, presenting an opportunity to heighten the senses of the viewer. The Protective Comfort Land Cape was made with pockets that I later stuffed with bits and ends of old weavings. These pockets were scented with essential oils reminiscent of the tall pine trees and big open skies I remember from growing up in Texas. The Portable Nostalgia-Curing Meditation Seat also has similarly scented sachets inside to promote a relaxed state of meditation for introspection and accessing memory when used.

The PCLC can be worn on the body for comfort and protection; laid down on the ground for meditation; or can cover the entire body for deep rest. The PNCMS can be used together with the PCLC as a seat upon which to sit and meditate or a pillow for the head to rest on when the body is fully horizontal. The PNCMS can also be tied around the waist with two felt covered ropes making it hands-free portable.

The Introspective Thought and Memory Sourcing Headpiece restricts the wearer’s sight and hearing to help the wearer enter a state of introspection. The beading and embroidery originates at the ITMSH and appears throughout the Protective Comfort Land Cape embellishing the scented pockets. These methodical stitches are indications of precious memories that we store in our minds and bodies, which is reflected in the placement of each embellished pocket.

The Camouflage Light-Step Producing Shin Guards give the wearer the mind power for lightness of step when walking, camouflage in the natural world, and protect the knees and shins when the wearer spreads out the Protective Comfort Land Cape on the ground for use.

When all combined, this multi-functional garment assures the wearer that no matter location, the tools and spaces for introspection and meditation can be accessed while enveloped in a beautiful imaginary landscape.

Healing Acts, 2019

Healing Acts was a project involving performance and sculptural objects as a response to trauma and grief. This project focused on process as ritual that resulted in precious artifacts. The artifacts serve to document the process and hold the visual representations of grief and pain expelled during the making process.

The project began with the creation of Hand-held Healing Objects: seven sculptural objects that were made by weaving, wrapping and binding soft wool and cotton around found objects. This obscuring of the objects gave them a mysterious aura and precious status. I then wrote a poem dictating the use of each object in a self-healing act. These poems are like spells or incantations to be used repeatedly.

I took these poems, one at a time, and wrote its entirety out on my body in thick black paint. I then wrapped strips of wine dyed silk around my limbs like a bandage, covering the words as well as soaking up the blots of paint like blood. These strips were then removed and woven in the round until each poem was permanently embedded in the woven object.

Lastly, each poem’s corresponding object was used to wash the remaining paint from my skin in a cleansing bathing ritual. This entire process was completed seven times, changing each object and poem combination.

When completed, the woven nest was tied and knotted to long skeletal branches painted white as a final holding place for the remnants of the ritual.