MARIA SIMMONS
WHAT WE THOUGHT THREE MONTHS LATER
My installation is a web of hanging farm yokes covered in nylon tights, naturally dyed lingerie, plant matter, and yarn. The lingerie stands in as a human presence, while the strands of yarn are a reminder of the tenuous connections we make between friends and lovers. The yarn and lingerie connect scraps of dyed material with embroideries of texts I’ve received from former partners. The yokes and some of the plants reference historical love superstitions. There is a beauty in the precariousness of it all – the fleeting nature of modern love immersed in historical superstition and methodologies.
ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
I am an emerging artist from Hamilton, Ontario specializing in textiles and natural dyes. My work relies heavily on materiality, using very specific materials to evoke an emotional reaction. I take inspiration from myth, superstition, and the body. Process is integral to my work, as the plants I choose for the dyes often add to the larger context of the piece. I research the significance, cultural, historical, and medicinal, of the plants involved and select them for both their meanings and their colours. I aim to evoke simultaneous feelings of wonder and perturbation, as though the viewer is witnessing the creation of a new myth. When faced with something that demands the viewer to contribute to the narrative, it brings out the significance of subtle stories in our own lives.
PARTNERS
Runway Partners
Lashgod
Hair Direction
Makeup Direction
Event Partners
Promise
David Cash