CLEW

2003-2005

Clew is a body of work that weaves together identity, language, and place through the intertwined histories of textile practice and maritime storytelling. Rooted in the artist’s experience of coastal culture, the project draws on the etymological and symbolic overlap between “text” and “textile,” invoking the “spinning of yarns” as both narrative fabrication and material process. Using handspun human hair as a primary fibre, the works engage feminine-coded mythologies associated with the sea: mermaids, sea hags, and other figures shaped by longing and distance. These references are interlaced with traditional maritime textile practices such as rope-making, knotting, netting, and knitting, historically undertaken by/for sailors and fishermen. Across the works, binding operates as both a literal and symbolic force. Hair, rope, and fibre function as conduits through which attachment, memory, and possession are negotiated, tracing the tension between fantasy and reality.

The project includes four works:

Cast | 11.5' × 10' × 10" (installed) | Handspun, waxed, and netted human hair, donated from over 40 individuals. 

Cable Home | Handspun merino wool and human hair, knitted into a traditional Aran sweater (size L men's). Referencing the use of knit patterns as a form of identification for fishermen lost at sea, the work reimagines this tradition through the incorporation of women’s hair, invoking folklore in which hair is knitted into garments as a protective charm.

Pull Cord | A 28-foot rope composed of handspun human hair and stitched dreadlocks. Drawing on maritime folklore of witches who tied knots in rope to conjure storms, the work extends this myth into excess: the rope’s scale suggests forces beyond control.

Secret | approx. 3' × 3' × 3' | A site-specific installation of beach stones bound in handspun hair and wool yarn, forming a cairn-like structure. Developed from a story told by the artist’s grandmother about carrying secrets to the grave, the work reflects on the weight of unspoken knowledge and its emotional accumulation.

 

Clew was supported by the Canada Council for the Arts, artsnb, and the Sheila Hugh Mackay Foundation, and for which WhiteFeather was awarded the Emerging Artist of the Year Prize by the New Brunswick Foundation for the Arts.

Materials: Handspun human hair, beeswax, handspun merino/human hair blend, found rocks, antique wooden netting shuttle, antique pulley block