MARIAH TATE KLEMENS
Love Blanket, cotton and linen, 48”x67”, 2021
Love Blanket I is made from reclaimed material. I was inspired by a unique romantic partnership on the eve of a wedding to create this piece which refers to the way two individuals fit together. It is an abstraction of their relationship. J & L have been in a committed partnership for over a decade, which determined the size of the quilt. They are ambitious people, which is mirrored in the density of stitches.The shapes in this work are referential of struggles and successes in their personal life, as well as references from clothing that the couple wears individually. To create this piece, I hand-stitched, quilted, and bound each section. The labor-intensive quality of this work is metaphorically referential to the care that we give each other.
Why Water Street?
Planned Parenthood has been my provider of choice for women's health since high school. It has always been a safe space for me to get care, have questions answered, and maintain my physical well-being. With healthcare for women, queer bodies, trans bodies, and any othered bodies being relegated to the space of the political, having my work exhibited with Planned Parenthood means more now than it ever has. I stand with Planned Parenthood and am honored to be a part of Water Street, especially because my works relate so directly to the spaces in which we find love and care with each other -- the home.
More about the artist:
My work combines storytelling, material exploration, and personal experience; creating works that delve into the nuances of contemporary domestic life. I depict aesthetic translations of contemporary domestic life through my personal visual code. This code is, in part, semiotic in nature, both materially and pictorially. My work refers directly to narratives associated with domestic desires for privacy, safety, warmth, and love. These stories are expressed through various material approaches.
Quilts act as a record of history, of community, and the individual people within it. In their making, time, narrative, and material are shared. I construct abstract story quilts from used and natural textiles. I repurpose clothing, sheets, curtains, hoarded mounds, scrap bins, and cast-off materials. Some of my works are created from interviews with couples about their romantic relationships. I then translate those narratives into quilt form, guided by their experiences. Other quilts of mine draw from my own experiences and are coded similarly. Elements in the code of my work include hand-sewn or machine-sewn, shape, size, color, material, and labor. Regardless of the source, the residue of forgotten histories is embedded in my used materials, serving as a conduit to what remains unsaid.
