THE ENDLESS CHAIN. Erinn Nordeman. Copyright Erinn Nordeman A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of the SCHOOL OF ART

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1 THE ENDLESS CHAIN by Erinn Nordeman Copyright Erinn Nordeman 2017 A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of the SCHOOL OF ART In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of MASTER OF FINE ARTS In the Graduate College THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA 2017

2 STATEMENT BY AUTHOR The thesis titled The Endless Chain prepared by Erinn Nordeman has been submitted in partial fulfillment of requirements for a master s degree at the University of Arizona and is deposited in the University Library to be made available to borrowers under rules of the Library. Brief quotations from this thesis are allowable without special permission, provided that an accurate acknowledgement of the source is made. Requests for permission for extended quotation from or reproduction of this manuscript in whole or in part may be granted by the head of the major department or the Dean of the Graduate College when in his or her judgment the proposed use of the material is in the interests of scholarship. In all other instances, however, permission must be obtained from the author. SIGNED: Erinn Nordeman APPROVAL BY THESIS DIRECTOR This thesis has been approved on the date shown below: Angela Zielinski May 12, 2017 Associate Professor of Art, 2D Defense date 2

3 TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES..4 ABSTRACT CHAPTER I. ARTIST STATEMENT. 6 II. RESEARCH III. THE DOUBLE WEDDING RING QUILT IV. PHOTOGRAPHY V. CONCLUSION BIBLIOGRAPHY 15 3

4 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Sandy, installation detail, Figure 2. Kimberly, installation detail, Figure 3. Sandy, installation detail, Figure 4. Sandy, installation detail, Figure 5. Pamela, installation view, Figure 6. Kimberly, photograph behind quilt, Figure 7. Sandy, installation view, Figure 8. Sandy, photography behind quilt, Figure 9. Brenda, Installation view, Figure 10. Pamela, installation view, Figure 11. Pamela, installation detail,

5 ABSTRACT Quilts can be blankets that keep you warm at night. They can be several pieces of fabric that are purposefully sewn together to make a beautiful, meaningful pattern. Quilts can be gifts. They can be pieces of artwork that someone has poured their heart into. Over time, quilts can become more meaningful to their owners. They can become a memory of their maker. I hope that the quilts I have made in the last year live on and become more meaningful in time. They are an expression of a young woman in 2017 and her quarrels with tradition. 5

6 I. ARTIST STATEMENT The image above is me doing my best impression of Pamela Anderson. At that age, I had complete confidence in myself. I embraced the beauty of seductive powers seen in women in media and was unashamed of being turned on by sex scenes in soap operas. I was entirely unaware that society might disapprove. All such signs of being uninhibited have dissipated in my adult self. Religious and societal traditions slowly taught me that shame was preferential to liberty, and modesty to personal exploration. These photographs and quilts display a journey for me breaking free and finding myself again. The quilts shield and censor the vulnerable photographs behind them. They utilize the double wedding ring pattern-- a traditional motif for wedding quilts to be given to brides. The quilts are a reminder of the traditional role of sex, through consummation, and the limitations of self within this context. The artifacts of these acts are on display for the audience to contemplate their own experiences. The variety of materials I chose counter traditional quilting fabrics. From cosplay vinyl to royal blue velvet, the fabrics were chosen for their tactile quality as well as their connections to my personal memories. I am exploring the memory that fabric can hold in relation to our coming of age. Together the photographs, the quilt motif, and the textiles illustrate the dichotomy many people feel regarding their sexual exploration: guilt and pleasure. 6

II. RESEARCH My great great Aunt Helen was a seamstress in Hollywood. She sewed pajamas for celebrities like Clark Gable. She sewed the remnants of those pajamas into beautiful quilts.

7 II. RESEARCH My great great Aunt Helen was a seamstress in Hollywood. She sewed pajamas for celebrities like Clark Gable. She sewed the remnants of those pajamas into beautiful quilts. I was interested in sifting through my matriarchal line and exploring their stories of struggle and strength. In my opinion, the skill and knowledge of sewing is powerful. My grandmother gave up sewing four decades ago and my mother hardly remembers anything her mother taught her about sewing. I decided to teach myself and revive this craft in my family. I felt like I was connecting to these women that I never met by learning how to sew and learning more about their lives. Figure 1. Sandy, installation detail, 2017 III. THE DOUBLE WEDDING RING QUILT While researching the quilt patterns my Aunt Helen used, I discovered the Double Wedding Ring quilt. The Double Wedding Ring quilt pattern is a repeating pattern of elegant interlocking rings. The curves are intricate and difficult to sew, as you can see in Figure 1. Most patterns are made up of simple triangles and squares. The Double Wedding Ring pattern s origins are vague. The pattern has been traced back to multiple sources, but it gained popularity in the United States during the Great Depression (Waldvogel n.d.) The pattern uses smaller pieces than most patterns. Women could be thrifty and use small scraps of fabric from old clothes, rather than buying new yardage of fabric. (Waldvogel n.d.) 7

The Double Wedding Ring quilt was meant to be a representation of the marriage of a man and a woman. The interlocking rings symbolize the two people coming together. (Bishop n.d.) Mothers, grandmothers, sisters, and aunts would come together to cut and sew all of these tiny pieces for the bride.

8 The Double Wedding Ring quilt was meant to be a representation of the marriage of a man and a woman. The interlocking rings symbolize the two people coming together. (Bishop n.d.) Mothers, grandmothers, sisters, and aunts would come together to cut and sew all of these tiny pieces for the bride. (Bishop n.d.) I immediately thought about these women sewing a quilt for the bride to consummate her marriage on. I think most traditions have a perverted nature that we tend to overlook. I had a personal connection to this quilt s meaning. It represented what was expected of me: purity until marriage. Purity was preferential to my own exploration of sexuality. This quilt design became tainted with this heteronormative, religious standard. My goal was to negate the tradition and fill these quilts with new meaning. Figure 2. Kimberly, installation detail, 2017 The first way I transformed the quilts was with their materials. Most quilts were made from 100% cotton or whatever old clothes were available. I went to the fabric store and touched everything. I picked fabrics based on their tactile nature. In Figure 2, the quilt is made up of a pink mesh. The mesh is delicate. It has a frilly pattern on it that sticks out. It reminded me of lingerie or underwear. The pink is close to fluorescent. The color vibrates off of the walls around it. 8

Figure 3. Sandy, installation detail, 2017 Each fabric had to bring me back to a memory or feeling. In Figure 3 the quilt is made up of a shiny black vinyl.

9 Figure 3. Sandy, installation detail, 2017 Each fabric had to bring me back to a memory or feeling. In Figure 3 the quilt is made up of a shiny black vinyl. The textile s intended use was for cosplay outfits or costumes. It is a sexy material that stretches over a woman s skin and hugs it close. The fabric is also a reference to S&M culture. I used sequins, lace, jersey, and velvet also. The use of this apparel fabric to construct the majority of the quilts was intentional. I wanted the female viewer to remember a time when we wore or felt these materials and what it made her feel. Did she feel sexy wearing that sequin dress? Did those basketball shorts make her feel powerful? Did she feel beautiful wearing her lace wedding gown? The second transformation of the quilts was in their purpose. The construction of a quilt is as follows: First the quilt top is sewn together. This is the patchwork on the front of the quilt. Then the quilt is given batting to make it warm. Next, it is backed with left over fabric or old sheets. Then the quilt is quilted, which means all the layers are sewn together. Finally the edges are bound together. For my thesis, I did not actually quilt any of the quilts. I only sewed the fronts of the quilt tops. I did not need to finish them. My intention was not to have them laying on a bed in a gallery. I wanted to hang them on a wall for display. I wanted them to be deconstructed and paired with photographs. 9

10 Figure 4. Sandy, installation view, 2017 Figure 5. Pamela, installation view, 2017 I gave the quilts a different purpose in the gallery. The different opacities of the quilts hid and revealed photographs of the female form. In figure 4, there is a photograph behind the black quilt. The viewer is blocked from seeing this photograph. This is a nod to censorship and blocking the gaze of the female nude figure. In contrast, in figure 5 the red bathing suit pushes forward through different types of fabric with varied opacity. IV. PHOTOGRAPHY I have been taking self-portraits for several years. They help me express the frustrations I have with my own body. The female body betrays itself. The process of taking photographs and making quilts were happening simultaneously. It wasn t until I accidentally threw a piece of fabric down onto a self-portrait in my studio that I realized the relationship between the two. Right away I saw the screen that the fabric became. Self-portraits, especially nude self-portraits, make you feel vulnerable to the world. Shielding my body with the fabric was the perfect way of expressing that vulnerability. 10

Figure 6. Kimberly, photograph behind quilt, 2017 After each quilt was planned out, I would start to think about the figure behind the quilt: What would she be wearing? How would she pose?

11 Figure 6. Kimberly, photograph behind quilt, 2017 After each quilt was planned out, I would start to think about the figure behind the quilt: What would she be wearing? How would she pose? What is silencing her? The first photograph I shot was in Figure 6. I took a piece of scrap fabric from the quilt and brought it to the photo shoot. This persona for me was pretty. She had her makeup and hair done perfectly. The posing of the persona is important. She is looking down with a piece of fabric tied around my mouth. She cannot talk. She is choosing this position, as she is the one tying herself up. This choice of submission was important. Women have guilt in knowing they find pleasure in submission. After all of the progress women have made, it feels wrong to find pleasure in being submissive. Another interpretation is this persona is a victim of abuse helping their abuser continue the behavior. I named this persona Kimberly after the Pink Power Ranger. 11

across her chest. Her nipples peak out from under the fabric. She looks up to her patriarch off camera with eyes that look like they are about to well up in tears.

12 Figure 7. Sandy, installation view, 2017 Figure 8. Sandy, photography behind quilt, 2017 In the photograph denied by most viewers in figure 8, the persona Sandy is nude except for an intricate white piece of fabric draped across her chest. Her nipples peak out from under the fabric. She looks up to her patriarch off camera with eyes that look like they are about to well up in tears. This figure is in the most submissive position behind a quilt that referenced sadomasochist culture. My inspiration for the pose and the choice of costume was old first communion portraits of little girls. Sandy from the movie Grease inspired this persona. Figure 9. Brenda, Installation view,

I wanted to capture the unembarrassed attitude I had as a kid. I never tried to impress anyone and I did not understand society s idea of beauty or sex appeal. Figure 10.

13 Behind the purple quilt in figure 9, the persona Brenda is in a silver leotard with purple stockings. Her pink underwear peaks out. She is posed looking away from the viewer with her legs crossed and her arms behind her back. This persona is child like and playful, trying to touch her elbows together. I wanted to capture the unembarrassed attitude I had as a kid. I never tried to impress anyone and I did not understand society s idea of beauty or sex appeal. Figure 10. Pamela, installation view, 2017 Figure 11. Pamela, installation detail, 2017 Pamela Anderson, one of my childhood idols, directly inspired the persona in figure 10. After I saw her on Baywatch for the first time, I knew she had the perfect female form. She had large breasts and big blonde hair. Her red lips matched the color of her small one-piece bathing suit. In this photograph I did a more recent impression of this archetype. It was the perfect pair to the white quilt. The red lipstick and bathing suit pierce through the lace, mesh and jersey fabrics, intriguing the viewer to peak behind the quilt for more. The purity of the white fabrics contrasts the boldness of the persona beneath. The persona s hands massage through her hair, while she hikes up her hip to show off her hourglass figure. Her confidence stares out at the viewer in contrast to the other personas in the room. 13

14 V. CONCLUSION For this exhibition I did not want to make quilts like my ancestors did. I wanted them to push the boundaries of their purpose and tradition. I shifted the materials of traditional wedding quilts into contemporary questions of sexuality, identity and female gender expectations. With different photographed personas, I was able to experiment with my female body and its capabilities. My goal was that the viewer would be able to relate to a young women s growth through adolescence into adulthood. 14

15 BIBLIOGRAPHY 1. Waldvogel, Merikay. Soft Covers For Hard Times: Quiltmaking and the Great Depression. Place of publication not identified: Rutledge Press, Bishop, Robert, and Carter Houck. The romance of double wedding ring quilts. New York: E.P. Dutton in association with the Museum of American Folk Art,

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