The Hook: Mirrors and Messages

This exhibit of over 25 pieces is an examination of how one takes in information over their lifetime.
If a person were able to remember even fifty percent of what they have heard and seen in their life, how would that affect their reactions to their world?
I have come to the realization that my work is full of messages and visions that entered me in my lifetime and I am struck by the impact they have made on my existence. These messages are so enduring and resilient. But not only that. I seem to have taken on those statements, and at some point, in my life it became unclear as to how those messages became my self-identifier.
Is that message someone else’s story?
Is that THEIR belief?
Is that the way the other person feels about themselves?
Why do I not know if I first had that belief on my own, or if I adopted it over my lifetime?
What do I see each time I look in a mirror? That reflection – whose story is that?
Am I seeing myself as that child before she knew herself?
That young maiden before she became a mother?
Myself as that long-time partner in a challenging relationship, even though it is long past?
The Hook is sharp and unrelenting. It hangs on with a passion and ferocity that can control even the best intentions. The haunting of those visions and words compels me to explore my truth through stitch.