TARA | portfolio
moss coat proposal
For my application to the Residenza Lago Scuro 2023, I am proposing to create a piece of wearable art imitating nature: a moss jacket made from yarn and fabric.
As a child, I spent hours exploring the woods behind my childhood home. I found a large rock surrounded by a circle of pine trees and this became my small kingdom. I began collecting moss to transplant onto the top of the rock until I had created a soft moss bed for myself. One day, I dreamt, I would create a moss blanket to keep me warm while I napped or read on my moss rock. During my long pandemic walks, I found myself again drawn to the different types of moss and small plants that I encountered. The idea of the moss blanket resurfaced for me, and I decided to finally make it a reality. My new vision is to create a long jacket covered in textile 'mosses' to function as a piece of wearable art.
Inspiration
The mossy and lush landscape of the woods behind my childhood home are the main inspiration for this project. The variety of colors and formations is breathtaking, especially as they interact with the landscape of rocks, trees, and falling leaves.
Moss growing near my childhood home
From left to right, is: artwork by Vanessa Barragão whose textural seascapes inspire me to play with different textiles and techniques, a gorgeous moss field, and a moss rug by artist Alexandra Kehayoglou.
I created the following images using the Midjourney AI image generator to serve as project inspiration.
Materials and Techniques
I have collected a large stash of green yarns and fabrics from local thrift stores, friends, and mill end/odd lot sales. The rug hooking base canvas for this jacket is also thrifted. It is important to me to use sustainably sourced materials for this project to honor the natural theme. My current collected materials are shown below.
This project will include elements made with many techniques including rug hooking, locker hooking, fabric manipulation, crochet, sewing and knitting. I have taken classes in fabric manipulation and have learned the other skills through my mother and other prominent women mentors in my life or through teaching myself with books and videos.
