‘The dream’
(written 10th April 2020)
A few weeks back I had my first mentoring session with my mentor Iris via Zoom. A fabulous catch up (she told me exactly what I needed to hear, your work is good and It’s unique). It snowed and she showed me some of the academic architecture of Cranbrook Academy outside Detroit from her window through the falling flakes, it looked too pretty, like a snow globe of possibility. I had made notes and sent a few images of work to Iris and given thought to how I wanted to pull my objects together and make some kind of altar, placement of work relating to each other…little satellites of interest. We had a good discussion about the state of the world and how people will deal with the fallout from C-19, will people go back to their old ways or take lessons from what we are in right now and use these to improve? Firstly their lives, secondly their relationship with others and thirdly the planet?
We got to discuss where my project was going and flowing. Its’ ritualistic aspect, which I thought I wanted to home in on is already interwoven into my process and methodology. She suggested I look at the processional Madonna, how it’s dressed and cared for before the processions (I wanted to be a nun once); look at Viktor and Rolf haute couture, Matryoshka layering, folk costume/art, embroidery. Make notes, observe, and pile up, layer fabric and intentions, even if the intentions are scribbled notes pinned to fabric/silk, and look at block patterns.
Old block pattern unearthed and re-formulated April 2020
I left our session elated and my tummy filled with a golden orb of hope and possibilities; it was delicious, all I have to do now is place this into practice. As I started to research the above, I had the most odd experience; while viewing Victor and Rolf’s work it dawned on me that the night before I chatted with Iris I had a dream where I was wearing my hood of self-doubt (I even dreamt of that before I made it) along with the skirt I had wanted to get married in over the skirt I had got married in 18 years ago. Both were tulle but one black (the one I so wanted to wear…”you can’t get married in black”) and the other blue and cream, both were very similar to a Viktor and Rolf garment. In the dream I started to embroider onto the black skirt notes and pictures, I couldn’t see what they were as it was too misty to make out. But next to me was the witches ladder I started to make a while back (for protection against…) and embroider for the altar I had plans for. The black velvet ribbon I have been working on tumbled down into the floor boards and tethered me to the spot stopping me flying away, holding me down, what felt like in reality, struggling and pulling, twisting and turning I couldn’t get away, my lungs couldn’t breathe and they felt like they were filling with water… I woke up covered in sweat, I took the skirts out of their protective cover in my wardrobe and hung them up on the door and just stared at them… my intention is to work!
‘Two wedding skirts and a mask’, (April 2020) Viktor and Rolf dream in the light of day.
Layering and folding, tying and concealing note/intentions, witches ladder over the top
April 2020 Witches ladder detail. Detail of basket for head…scaffolding of the processional figure…