Threads - Tanya Scott

Threads is an exhibition comprised of embroidered text on antique handkerchiefs. By decoupling the text from a hand-written letter left by my grandmother, I have recontextualized a life-defining moment of fear and gratitude from a young immigrant woman in America to explore the nature of personal narrative, the malleability of these stories, and their inherent worth to oneself. Coupled with the complex history, and sewn into the literal fabric of the handkerchief, Threads begs the question of whose stories are told, by and for whom, and what gives those stories, and ultimately a life, value?