Reflections on Portrait Reinterpretation Project

This project has a lot of me in it. Literally my blood sweat and tears. The volume of hours I have spent working on the pieces is enormous. And I am proud of this. It feels good to give so much.

This process and the depth of commitment it's required has been really affecting. Unsurprising in one way, as I chose the Nun piece because I related to it personally in a trauma background way. 

I am pleased with my end choice to reinterpret her wimple and reupholster the kneeler. Curated in combination, they create an installation ritual that invites the audience to participate and reflect. And I really love that; creating something controversial that commands relationship with audience. That builds dialogue and offers an experience.

I feel very very grateful that the curator at the Castle has so thoughtfully positioned the Nun painting to amplify my reinterpretation intentions; she has placed the painting above an ornate radiator that acts like a faux altar. It's absolutely perfect.

They say that polite art rarely gets you noticed and I agree. But I don't want to create transgressive art for the sake of it; that feels a bit clumsy. Right now I want to hit that balance of provocative ambiguity so the loudest voice is the audience. This feels particularly relevant in relation to my pieces which circle around themes of patriarchy, subjugation of women, grooming, systemic abuse and collective denial of these things by society because they are unpleasant to look at. It's a visual language mechanism that forces reflection and encourages responsibility on the viewers part. People seem to be much more open to consideration of things if you ask them question rather than shout about your lens at them.

I stand by my choice to use craft as a medium for both; subversive stitching was absolutely the way to go with both pieces because it brings feminism into the conversation very succinctly. And it puts me into artistic process; becoming a satire of the very thing I am discussing. HOWEVER. By making this choice (and I will add the word arrogantly here because I hadn't ever cross stitched one teeny tiny little bitty bit ever in whole entite my life) I set myself up for countless hours of work. I have become totally consumed by stitching. No time to play or relax or get into trouble. Subjugated by the stitch. On my knees. I suppose it's good to be ambitious. And I am enjoying the poetic irony of this. But I am not enjoying the stress that this arrogance/ naivety has caused, with my project running over the expected timeline by miles and miles.

That said, the pieces, especially the kneeler, are so rich for all the input and labour. And they will live longer than me. That's really something to reflect on.

I am enjoying how both pieces play with scripts and subvert visual language. The wimple feels like the more ambiguous of the two pieces, with its bubblegum pink adorable font stitched into functional bleached white linen, as it hangs limply like a ghost or discarded costume from the wall. 

 

I am really curious to see how the audience connects with it all. Will people kneel I wonder. I will go to the gallery and spy nonchalantly.

I still can't quite believe that our pieces will be in the second biggest exhibition space in the city; it's such an exciting privilege.