Merill Comeau finds beauty in the discarded: secondhand clothes, paper ephemera, and vintage linens – all those disparate materials that were once utile and now forgotten.
Her creative process relies on deconstructing and then – reconstructing, altering the materials to create new forms of art. Those include (but aren’t limited to) installations, murals, and even garments, constructed of vintage clothing and linens.
“Textiles are an essential element of our daily lives,” Comeau told Textile Artist, explaining her lifetime obsession. “We are swaddled when born, we sleep in linens, we clothe our bodies each day, and we mark life’s passages with special garments and fabrics.”
According to her, “each piece carries stories of countless human beings: who created, wore, gifted, graced their table with, or found comfort in it.” It is through the process of alterations that she sheds light on these forgotten stories and personal histories.
Take a look at some of her thought-provoking work.
