Kachina Leigh
feed sac, 2023
vintage and hand-dyed fabrics, embroidery, shell 14x14 inches
Using an unfinished quilt square with a more visually interesting back than quilt design, I embroidered the side view of a embryonic sac, which is referenced in the title of the work. Within the inner most space is the fragment of a shell.
Kachina Leigh
mother/daugher/sister/saint, 2022 - day 245 of installation
dresses sewn by artist, embellished with beading, embroidery, silk screening, and encaustic medium on plaster dress forms variable
Based on a 1938 family photo showing my Great Grandmother, Grandmother and Aunt, I sewed and embellished three dresses using a similar pattern from the 1930s, mixing family lore with the iconography associated with the Saints by the same name to create the imagery on each dress. The work was installed in Campbell, Nebraska; my Grandmother, Aunt and Mother were all born in the house that once sat on this site. The road leading to the installation is a minimum maintenance road, impassible during storms or snow. These women were not saints in the strict sense of the word, but their devotion to family and their stewardship of the land was sincere, reverent, and unwavering. I believe "the ladies", as they have come to be called, appreciate the quiet isolation, enjoying the ability to witness the seasons shift from fall to winter, spring to summer, directly connected to the land on which they lived. This installation is intended to be on site for a full year.
Kachina Leigh
mother/daughter/sister/saint, 2021 - day 1 of installation
dresses sewn by artist, embellished with beading, embroidery, silk screening, and encaustic medium on plaster dress forms variable
Based on a 1938 family photo showing my Great Grandmother, Grandmother and Aunt, I sewed and embellished three dresses using a similar pattern from the 1930s, mixing family lore with the iconography associated with the Saints by the same name to create the imagery on each dress. The work was installed in Campbell, Nebraska; my Grandmother, Aunt and Mother were all born in the house that once sat on this site. The road leading to the installation is a minimum maintenance road, impassible during storms or snow. These women were not saints in the strict sense of the word, but their devotion to family and their stewardship of the land was sincere, reverent, and unwavering. I believe "the ladies", as they have come to be called, appreciate the quiet isolation, enjoying the ability to witness the seasons shift from fall to winter, spring to summer, directly connected to the land on which they lived. This installation is intended to be on site for a full year.
Kachina Leigh
child’s play, 2020
vintage girl's dress, hand and machine stitching, vintage patterns and pins 18 inches in width by 24 inches in height; 5 inches deep
Hand and machine stitching are used to push the limits of the fabric of my Mother's childhood dress to the point of breaking. The collection of threads ultimately holds firm, despite being flattened and becoming misshapen. In spite of the paths or patterns set before us, there is the ability to be resilient and change.
Kachina Leigh
materiality of mourning – number one in a series of thirteen, 2019
reclaimed leather and abaca over wire base 9 inches in width by 13 inches in height; 9 inches deep
Kachina Leigh
materiality of mourning – number five in a series of thirteen, 2019
reclaimed leather with wax 9 inches in width by 13 inches in height; 9 inches deep
Kachina Leigh
the weight of expectations, 2017
vintage patterns and mixed media variable - approximately 6 feet in height by 18 feet in length
Kachina Leigh
the weight of expectations – photo of performance, 2017
vintage patterns and mixed media variable - approximately 6 feet in height by 18 feet in length
Kachina Leigh
shame, 2013
hand-dyed wool and hand-dyed cotton gauze nuno felted with machine and hand stitching 18 inches at widest point by 360 inches in length
Kachina Leigh
shame – detail, 2013
hand-dyed wool and hand-dyed cotton gauze nuno felted with machine and hand stitching 18 inches at widest point by 360 inches in length
