Fabric of Humanity – Repairing My World

---

Artist: Caron Tabb

Title: Fabric of Humanity – Repairing My World

Attribution: Caron Tabb, Fabric of Humanity - Repairing My World (2021)

Year: 2021

Materials: Fabric, leather, yarn, thread, paper, ribbon, nylon, cardboard

Dimensions: Approximately 140 x 110 inches

Image Statement: Like many the world over, the pandemic left me isolated from friends and family near and far. As a result, I decided I would pull my loved ones closer to me through my artwork. I began sourcing fabric swatches from people I know and care for around the world and started on an asymmetrical ever-growing quilting project. While I expected simply the swatches, each seemed to arrive with a story attached. I read of loved ones long gone, places frequented years ago, and family treasures. I was humbled and touched by the thought and care people gave to my request. People from as far as South Africa, England, Germany, Israel, and across the United States sent me cherished pieces of garments and heirlooms they had held onto for decades, even a lifetime: a one-hundred-year-old nightcap from the ‘old country’, a sixty-year-old baby bonnet, a swatch from a wedding dress worn over thirty years ago. The notes which arrived with each swatch hand-stitched together became the “backstory,” a glimpse of our shared humanity.