Proximate Parcels
Proximate Parcels, 2019, Deconstructed thread spools and cores, 70 x 34 x 4 inches (photo credit: Mario Gallucci)
Brenda Mallory, BFA, is a Native (Cherokee) American visual/sculpture/mixed media/installation artist whose work has been exhibited in the Center for Contemporary Native Art, Portland Art Museum, Portland International Airport, Whatcom Museum (Bellingham, WA), Eiteljorg Museum (Indianapolis, IN), etc. For her website.
Proximate Parcels is comprised of spools of industrial sewing thread that have been sliced apart to expose the individual strands. The act of cutting something apart down to its core, effectively destroying its original function, but then reforming it into a beautiful, lush object reflects my interest in how things that are broken or disrupted are often still viable and lively and enduring. The varying shades of red thread reference the complicated issues of blood quantum that determine certain Native American tribal enrollments. The title Proximate Parcels refers to the forced land allotment policies that destroyed the communal landholdings of many Oklahoma tribes, including that of my tribe, Cherokee Nation. Tribal identity by blood quantum and land allotments were both designed to break apart cultures, assimilate people, and destroy tribal affiliations. But like this complex, reformed red object, Native people are still here and also complex, strong, and beautiful entities.