Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Stitched Deaths: Linda Lovelace

(d. Apr. 22, 2002)





















Left in a bathroom stall at the Historic Columbus Theatre
Quote is from the Lovelace Memoir, Ordeal.

Friday, April 11, 2014

Stitched Deaths: Joseph Merrick

(d. Apr. 11, 1890)























Placed on the porch at Coffee Exchange, Providence, RI.

Quote is from Merrick's letters:

"'Tis true my form is something odd,
But blaming me is blaming God;
Could I create myself anew
I would not fail in pleasing you.

If I could reach from pole to pole
Or grasp the ocean with a span,
I would be measured by the soul;
The mind's the standard of the man."

- adapted from a poem by Isaac Watts

Windfalls or: What Passes Through The Needle's Eye

The Providence Art Windows are an art gallery, except better - because they never close and everyone can see them at any time, all the time, for as long as the installation runs. For this reason, I am happy to say that I have some of my work up in one of them.

A short description of the work: These large (48" x 84") stitched portraits represent the moment in time that Amanda Clayton, Urooj Khan, and Abraham Shakespeare each received a substantial monetary prize by result of playing the lottery. The bucket, bottle, and syringe symbolize the tragic end that each faced shortly after winning. The glittering pillows signify the almost unattainable nature of easy money and simultaneously relate to the stones in The Lottery.