Threads of Connection: An Offering to Re-Tangle Humanity and Nature with the Patterns of Our World

Author

Emily Shelton, Winthrop UniversityFollow

Date of Award

Spring 5-1-2024

Document Type

Thesis

College

College of Visual and Performing Arts

Degree Program

Fine Arts

Degree Name

Master of Fine Arts

Thesis Advisor

Claudia O'Steen, M.F.A.

Committee Member

Shaun Cassidy, M.V.A.

Committee Member

Myles Calvert, M.A.

Keywords

sustainability, sustainable art making, no-waste art making, sculpture, natural dyes, embroidery, recycling, patterns, self-similarity, interconnection, connection, murmuration, collective movements, collective experience, humankind, nature, coevolution, ecology, artistic investigation, plants, natural media

Abstract

In our world there are patterns of self-similarity that serve as evidence of the interconnectedness between humankind and the rest of the natural world. They are reflected in our bodies, behaviors, and environments, both natural and manmade, and can be found throughout systems at every scale, micro through macro. These organic, linear motifs branch into smaller iterations that seem to shape our existence on this planet as we gravitate towards experiences that echo these patterns. During everyday acts like shopping in a grocery store or a crowd at a concert, we unconsciously participate in self-similar collective movements as we navigate our shared environments. These moments can serve as a powerful reminder of our harmony as we feed off of the energies of every other individual, often even extending to other species. They give us the sense that we are each one small piece of a larger whole, connected to others by invisible threads of patterns and shared experiences as coinhabitants of this world. As an offering of reciprocity to the natural world, I have created a series of artworks that investigate these patterns of self-similarity that unite human and nature. This offering consists of one embroidered tapestry and a series of large scale sculptures that serve as a culmination of my no-waste artmaking practice involving both found and recycled materials. Working with sustainable materials to collaborate with the natural world has also led to the incorporation of natural materials foraged respectfully or grown from my own garden. The resulting exhibition centers around the interconnectedness of self-similar patterns and the re-unification of human society and the natural world.

Recommended Citation

Shelton, Emily, "Threads of Connection: An Offering to Re-Tangle Humanity and Nature with the Patterns of Our World" (2024). Graduate Theses. 160.
https://digitalcommons.winthrop.edu/graduatetheses/160