Pattern: Feminine Slices
Laura Wagner
Artist's Statement - 2007

I am working with imagery taken from a collection of 1950’s paper dolls as well as contemporary sewing patterns. Women’s fashions, particularly in the 1950’s, but today as well, can be restrictive and impractical. The dolls are sliced, their bodies divided and placed in different locations across the page. Cultural divisions, restrictions and values are revealed by what we choose to wear and what we see others around us wearing.

However, sewing and the making of clothing are connective elements. These skills traditionally taught by mothers to daughters, through generations, still bring people togethe, from the country quilting group to the hipster stitch-and-bitch. The fabric patterns I work with are the linking background for these divided dolls. Each cut of the pattern is unique and random, making the connections different every time.