WEAVES FOR SPELL, SWALLOW, SYNCH, 2015
Synthetic braiding hair, carved wood, iridescent paint, black thread
I wonder how we might shift our culture if everyone was given more permission to touch and explore queerness in the absence of crisis, and for objects to act as a portal in this way. I believe in color theory and cuteness as tools of subversion. These are experiments towards that end, using those tools to make something feel accessible, but have enough subliminal depth to create a subconscious impact in relation to notions of bodies, power, realness, grace, disgrace, and everyday life. Both this Weave (For Spell), and Weave (For Swallow) are an attempt to condense larger concepts of fantasy and identity within one symbol expressed through its materials. I am appropriating symbols from alchemical texts that were used to instruct transformation and immortality, and weaving the symbols from everyday beauty supplies like braiding hair and black thread.