Pill packets, stitch, diptych, work in progress
Pharmacopoeia 2, 2024, pill packets, stitch, work in progress
(Click for full image)
I am a collector of strange things. I have been collecting pill packets for quite a few years now- my own and those belonging to a number of my kind and longsuffering friends. Whenever these sweet friends bring me their own collections of empty pill packets, we take a moment to reflect on the fact that these drugs help to keep us well...or alive! It becomes a kind of ritual. Many thanks to those who remember me.
I have experimented with pill packets before, in 2017, using staples as stitches, with some interesting results. See Displacement activity 9 / Pharmacopoeia 1. This time I used my sewing machine. Again, there's something about the repetitive, and maybe rather pointless-seeming nature of sewing things together when they would normally be thrown out, that I find poignant. The work has associations for me with an attempt to mend something, but because its a difficult process stitching the metal and plastic pieces together, its also rather ineffectual and feels futile. I have left lots of loose ends of thread, almost invisible, again highlighting the fragility of the joins.
At first sight, the shiny, metallic surfaces are a curiosity prompt. Is it armour, a protection? Or a cage?
These sculptures are a work in progress. I have visions of towering, snaking sculptures filling a space, reminding us about the fragility of our bodies, how they need care and that sometimes, pharmaceuticals can make all the difference. Watch this space!