2 textile banners
Botanical Banner (Thyme + Sage)
cotton
140 x 175 cm
Botanical Banner (Marigold)
cotton
120 x 105 cm
Both works grew from research into the role of nature/flowers in storytelling. For a while now, I’ve been looking into the various symbolic meanings ascribed to natural elements in traditional storytelling.
Since the works were going to be shown from people’s houses, I also wanted to take the homeliness of textiles into it. I asked the homeowners to take the textiles into their home at night, and hang them out the window every morning, like you would also do with bedding. I liked the idea of this small ritual getting attached to the works.
The Thyme/Sage banner focuses on the idea of using these herbs as a way of protecting your home. I read about a medieval ritual of braiding thyme and hanging it from your window, or burning a twig of thyme or sage as a way of protecting a place. The text, ‘I am well’ is a literal translation of the Latin name for sage: salvia. The design for the work is based on the traditional ‘Log Cabin’ quilt block, a quilt pattern that symbolizes a safe home.
The Marigold banner is based on a story a friend told me about marigolds. It’s a folk wisdom that when a marigold suddenly comes up in your garden, someone in your home will pass away soon.
I was touched by this story, and decided to use it as the focus for this second banner. The marigold in the middle is surrounded by a slightly sinister text about how you can never fully know what’s hiding beneath the soil of your garden.