From the moment I started the free-motion machine embroidery on these 120 vintage handkerchiefs, I was looking forward to "installation day". My mind's eye could see them criss-crossing the hallway at Stormwater Studios in Columbia. The vision was so strong that it didn't surprise me at all when I had exactly the right number to fill the space. If I can say so myself, it looks perfect. (Click here for a very short video on You Tube!)
While this installation is "perfect" in my mind, it hardly represents anything else one might consider ideal. Every one of these handkerchiefs has a phrase expressing some grievance regarding the current socio-political scene. There's nothing ideal about the actions against marginalized communities or the roll back of DEI iniatives or the number of government offices shuttered or the research grants that have been cut There's nothing ideal about misinformation.
There's also nothing perfect about the installation in terms of its scope or completion. I didn't mention things from Trump's first term or the four years between the two terms. Some grievances couldn't be adequately condensed to fit on a handkerchief with letters that might still be legible when hanging on an overhead clothes line. So, they weren't included. I had to stop at some point long before the insults stopped. After all, this exhibit had a firm deadline!
The exhibit, presented by Jasper Project, is a short one. It goes only through the coming weekend but it includes a poetry protest, an activism postcard evening, a drum circle, other musical performances, and both an opening and closing reception. The exhibit also includes two of my other artworks: Nails in a Coffin and The Locks Have All Been Changed.
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