Mending

As I fold my son’s laundered clothes, the holes in the knees of his pants remind me of my childhood exploits, the falls that punctuated each adventure and the scars I carry from those accidents. My body and most often the knees of my pants would be repaired the same way: wash then patch (an iron-on patch for the pants and a Band-Aid for me). When things were more serious, stitches might be required for the body and the clothes would be discarded. Even then, darning and suturing leave a mark, a scar. Each pierces the substrate it is repairing, performing a modest violence upon what is to be mended, and reminding each of us of our sensitivity, vulnerability, and mortality.


Mend 9 2016 Embroidery on muslin. 17" x 13".


Mend 9 2016 Embroidery on muslin. 17" x 13". Detail.


Mend 8 2016 Embroidery on muslin. 17" x 13".


Mend 8 2016 Embroidery on muslin. 17" x 13". Detail.


Mend 7 2016 Embroidery on muslin. 17" x 13".


Mend 7 2016 Embroidery on muslin. 17" x 13". Detail.


From Within 2 2016 Embroidery on muslin. 33" x 75”.


From Within 2 2016 Embroidery on muslin. 33" x 75”. Detail.


Mend 6 2016 Embroidery on muslin. 17" x 13”.


Mend 6 2016 Embroidery on muslin. 17" x 13”. Detail.


Mend 5 2016 Embroidery on muslin. 17" x 13”.



Mend 5 2016 Embroidery on muslin. 17" x 13”. Detail.



Mend 4 2016 Embroidery on muslin. 17" x 13”.



Mend 4 2016 Embroidery on muslin. 17" x 13”. Detail.



From Within 2015 Embroidery on muslin. 75" x 33”.



From Within 2015 Embroidery on muslin. 75" x 33”. Detail.
Photographs of Mend 4 - 13 and From Within 1 and 2 by Tim Thayer.