"Three Things to Remember, As long as you’re dancing, you can break the rules. Sometimes breaking the rules is just extending the rules. Sometimes there are no rules." - Mary Oliver (As Long as You’re Dancing). This installation work is informed by lifelong experience as a competitive dancer and the ongoing growth and change in my relationship with dance. Using textile methods which best translate the inherent energy of dance, I aim to capture the fluidity of movement in physical form. In what was once a rigid practice, newfound appreciation and freedom of expression have been discovered by reinterpretation through material and play. Textile processes such as the use of punch needle and the repetitive motion of the stitching provide a connection to the costumes handmade by my mother and those that came before. This piece is an ode to the familiar traditional embroidery seen on Irish dance costumes throughout my life. Additionally, it represents how dancing has influenced my creative practice, both in its freedom and movement and also in its meticulousness and repetition. Every stitch and fibre of yarn aids the construction of identity within this work, taking shape both from the movement of my own body, and from the garments the body is adorned in. I use 100% merino wool that I have dyed by hand, further highlighting and deepening my connection to the process. This work also weaves the tale of an internal battle; reflecting the joy I have found in the freedom of movement while simultaneously being weighed down. Encumbered by frustration and restlessness, the desire to keep moving, to emerge from the confines of expectation and the obstacles of my own mind. Ceramic sequin-shaped elements are a weighty presence in the work, revealing the heaviness of perfectionism and self-limiting beliefs. Each one attached individually on site, becoming more and more weighed down.
