My Heart Does Not Judge

2021. Sculpture made in Mixed media (Acrylic, recycled threads, speakers, fiber stuffing)

Concept:

Someone asked what this soft sculpture is: “Is it a punching bag?”
“It’s a human heart!” I replied.

To some extent it is. It all depends on our output. How would you treat a human beating heart? No matter what you do to this heart it will still beat, but will it weigh the same? Will you hug this human heart and feel that it still beats strong?

Some people will pass by and see this crocheted heart and judge it as “not art” but a crocheted artifact, which is the same kind of rejection people receive on a daily basis because they do not fit the standards of society. “This person is not this, but this”, “this person deserves less because (insert polarizing opinion here)”. We are so keen in dividing our humanity in “we and them” not taking the time to think deeply in the consequences of isolating members of society.

People that are left aside are invisibilized, dehumanized and oppressed on a daily basis. Cancel culture fueling this toxic environment puts us all on edge. Polarized, labeled, marginalized, used, discarded. 

The hard truth is that we are all at risk of becoming “Them” at any given time. 

Technique:

The use of crochet has been a predominantly female domestic activity associated with craft and utilitarian purposes. Craft but not Art, no matter how delicate, well thought or complex. I felt the need to use yarn to create this piece because of how undermined this medium is.

Creating interactive sculptures with yarn pose many challenges that interest and challenge me. When I crochet I need to count each stitch, it requires deep concentration, a meditation of sort. It relaxes my mind and it humbles me. I do my pieces with no more ambition than to be able to witness how people react to them.

Yarn is not a forgiving material. If you do something wrong you have to unravel what you have done and do it again. It teaches you to surrender and trust.