CATWASHINGTON

I am a Black, Queer, Detroit-based fiber artist that specializes in tapestry crochet. My tapestries explore presence and meditations on form through portraiture. I started this work during my eating disorder recovery, first as a distraction, but then as a need for self awareness. When I paired this technique with self portrait work, I was forced to sit with my self image for over 30 hours per piece. I was confronted by how much and how little I knew of my own facial features as I slowly crafted myself, row by row. By the time the pieces are done, they are a tediously made image of self. However, when they’re hung up for public consumption, their sheer weight warps the pattern, altering the piece from when I first made it. My practice of tapestry crochet has become a complex study of my own perception of self. Through my work, I hope to evoke pause, meditation, and self reflection.