Time Piece - A Day In My Life
A rhythmic, repetitive, minimalist, complex piece, it is very personal and full of symbolism. I amalgamated two huge life events this year, my 60th birthday and my father’s Alzheimers diagnosis. I stamped every birthday in my life on individual squares of brass, a reference to a memory calendar we bought for my father in an effort to keep track of time. It was a slow process, ironically made slower by the extra caring responsibilities. The interactive piece has clever connections and, with initial instruction, enables it to be worn/displayed three ways.
One long piece marks all my birthdays at once. When the wearer walks, it moves to resemble the double helix in a DNA molecule.
Altered to attach the two ends, my birth day and my 60th birthday, the piece drapes on the torso. On its return up the body the backs of the squares are exposed, blank like my fathers memory.
The chain mechanism on the back allows the piece to be “drawn” for privacy like a Venetian blind, the squares tight together.
All photos - Penny McGovern