Shroud studies

In my work, shrouds represent symbolic signifiers of grief-and-loss, absence and presence of the body, and what is seen and Unseen within our material realm. 

Earth Element: body as landscape. 2024                                                         Jacquard loom weaving with hand embroidery                                                  cotton, silk embroidery floss, maple wood, dirt
    Earth Element: body as landscape, detail. 2024         
This textile piece is exploring earth elements as a reminder of the interconnected relationship humans have with more-than-human worlds (animal, plant, spirit, etc.). Oneness between human and more-than-human lives is indicated through the folds of the paper shroud mimicking the mountain range. This is also a reminder of cyclical life and death symbiosis, and that humans too, are a part of nature. This piece is wall-mounted in finished dimensions of a traditional shroud. Dirt is laid at the base of the textile.
Bio shroud, with video shadow projection, 28" x 72". 2024                                                                             biomaterial textile: tulle, cotton, seaweed, kelp, human hair, branch        
  Bio shroud, detail. 2024           
  Bio shroud, detail with video shadow projection. 2024 
This bio-shroud is about entanglements. Long strands of my hair float in a sea, co-mingling with seaweed and kelp I gathered and laid within a bio-mixture made from common kitchen ingredients. White tulle holds and binds us together. Cause and effect. We hang bonded together as a suspended plane from an arbutus branch. Dead fall I collected after a winter storm. There are tears in this bio-shroud, stitched together with silken thread. Scars. We are all related.
Shroud study: reliquary, 40" x 15'. 2023                                                      felted human hair on organic cotton, silk embroidery floss, vine branch
Shroud study: reliquary, detail. 2023
Shroud study: reliquary. detail top half. 2023 
"Shroud study: reliquary" is a gesture to my Irish relatives who sewed shrouds for their loved ones, women who bathed and prepared the bodies for viewing and the wakes. It consists of fragments of fabric I’ve patched back together, an echoing of the work of women’s hands throughout history, and the care and love that was given for the deceased one’s body. The shroud’s 15-foot length falls and pools on the floor and there’s human hair felted within it. I wanted to create a visceral reaction. Affect. The topic of death and loss isn’t comfortable for many people. I carefully stitched these panels together, moving through my own discomfort of engaging with clippings of strangers’ hair. 6-feet of felted hair that represents the human body.