On/Off Assignment

"On/Off Assignment"

My day without technology was one of reflection. I spent my day indoors, and mostly alone for the duration of my screen purge.

My paternal grandmother has been very sick recently. This assignment gave me a lot of time to reflect on my relationship with my grandmother and how her faith carries in me. Despite being raised Catholic, and attending Catholic schools, my faith did not follow me into adulthood. The aesthetics of Catholic art, however, have followed me, in particular how the image of La Virgen has been revered in Latinx and Hispanic households. Not speaking the same language as my grandmother, and living outside of the city growing up has caused our relationship to be very surface level. My most vivid memories of visiting my grandparents include playing with my sisters and cousins in their guest bedroom, where my grandmother had an altar erected honoring those who came before us, complete with dishes of holy water and anointed oils, images of the angels, and of course, images of the Virgin Mary. 

For this piece, I experimented with cross stitching a piece of faux leather with the image of the Virgin and child. I utilized a template that I then needed to adjust by hand to fit the scale that I wanted to work on. I was unable to complete it in the time that I had away from technology, but I hope to finish it in a technology-free, contemplative environment. 

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