Photos of this new piece tend to be deceptive. Firstly, they don’t capture the true size. This work measures almost 7 feet in height. Secondly, some think that because of the simplicity of the design that the piece was “easy” to put together. This overlooks the complexity of the overall composition, as well as the behind the scenes work that went into the creation of the piece.
The main theme of my current solo exhibit, Frame / fraym is as follows: “Frames give the world its form, shape and structure. This solo exhibition explores framed views, frames unveiled and hidden frames that bend beneath us, forcing us to show the strength that we possess in their absence.” My piece ‘Misaligned’ falls under the latter category. The inspiration for this piece comes from my own experience of having scoliosis- which is a curvature of the spine. I was diagnosed with scoliosis when I was 11 or 12 years old. As the curve progressively worsened, I ended up having to wear a back brace for the first two years of high school. This custo- made, specially molded hunk of plastic that I had to wear for 23 out of 24 hours a day is very likely what saved me from having to have surgery on my back. For that I am very thankful.
When I was younger I didn’t really see what the big deal about having scoliosis was. As I have gotten older I get it now. I am more aware of the stiffness and pain. I know what my limitations are in terms of what I can lift and how long I can be on my feet without a rest. I don’t by any stretch of the imagination see it is a disability- there are people suffering from much worse and it is certainly a manageable condition. But it also a condition that I am aware of on a daily basis.
I wanted to explore my own personal experience with scoliosis in the creation of this piece. It began as the idea that I wanted to represent lines that would be staggered to represent the misalignment of the vertebrae of someone with scoliosis. I initially cut out the rectangles in paper so that I could play around with the layout. As you can see here, I originally thought that I would have a rectangle for each vertebra. Once I saw the design on the floor, I realized that it was way too busy and so I dropped the number drastically. This allowed me to achieve the design that I had envisioned.
The next step was to get the wood. We had to do a special order to get the three planks of cherry wood that was needed for the composition. Then, while I got down to hooking the rectangles my husband got down to cutting out the rectangles in the design that I had decided on. As I wanted the three planks to be staggered instead of flush against each other this added another dimension of difficulty for him in cutting out the slots. But he managed it beautifully.
In April the snow had melted enough to take the piece outside to do all the sanding and varnishing. I saw the shadow of the piece on the deck, with all of the slots cut out, and I knew then that it was going to work and that it was going to be great.
The final step was to insert the panels that I had hooked in various shades of red- from lightest to darkest.
The hooked panels represent the vertebrae of the spine misaligned in someone with scoliosis. But the strong panels of cherry show the strength that is found elsewhere in the body to support the weakened core. The overall impression that I want this piece to give is one of strength, not weakness.
I am so pleased with how this piece turned out- it makes a real statement when hung in a gallery setting. And I am very happy that I am at last starting to gain the confidence to look more inwards in my work and am finding a way to represent myself and my feelings within my pieces.
Karen
