Project Statement
Eco-Crafts for Friends explores the intersection of environmental and relational sustainability through gift giving. Over 6 months in 2021, I made crafts out of the plastic wrappers, old fabrics and other recycled materials that accumulated in my home over the height of the pandemic and gave them as gifts to friends and family. In that challenging time of loss, uncertainty, and isolation, my aim was to keep myself grounded with hands-on creative practices while tending to the fragmented relationships around me. Some gifts I made include scrap paper thank you cards, patchwork coasters and pot holders, scrunchies, plastic crochet planters, and propagated house plants.
More about the context of this project: The initial lockdown period of the pandemic caused me to become more aware of what materials came into my home and how they left it. Compost and some recycling services were suspended or inaccessible, so I looked for other ways to process these materials outside of the landfill and doubled down with my use of recycled materials in my artwork. Crafting was also a way for me to keep my hands busy and my mind calm, and I was happy to share the products of that process with others in an effort to keep in touch.
As we were all adjusting to the changes, many of us could only manage to reach out to those who were closest to us, and networks of friends and acquaintances seemed to shrink. Yet at the same time, the needs of our communities increased, and with the political chaos at the time, there was a strong sense of personal responsibility for action. And so I conceptualized this simple project as a model for strengthening relational foundations that can support other ways that one seeks to make a larger impact.
Making and giving random trinkets is by no means a magic bullet to community or ecological health. But in the process of doing this project, I have learned how important it is to take small steps to care for others and the environment, even while (or especially when) humbled by our limitations. I also learned that giving and acts of service are integral to one’s sense of self, and that sometimes one needs to be led by intuition, and even prayer, to give in unexpected ways.
More broadly, I hope to encourage community care as a mode of self-care, to highlight the importance of nurturing that which nurtures you, and to show the generative possibilities of simple acts of generosity and that abundance can be found in unlikely places.
Eco-Crafts for Friends was made possible by the support of the City Seminary of New York through their Creative Community Care Virtual Residency. Workshops and programs that accompanied this project include: online recycled card-making workshops and Nurturing Spaces, a collaborative workshop with DIA de’Angelo (2022). A national exhibition tour is forthcoming for Fall 2023 to Spring 2024. Stay tuned!
