artwork unpacked
Sunday, 29 March 2020
“He takes my Rags” - a meditation
Sharon Roberts
Mixed media – rags (discarded, washed, torn and purchased from a social enterprise); thread (partially used, discarded and purchased from an op-shop); buttons (gifted from a friend’s old tin of buttons put aside and never used); acrylic paint;
Canvas (new stretched canvas, painted red, supports the rags)
He takes my rags was created in response to the theme, Transformation, an exhibition by Visionaries artists, shown at Vera Wade Gallery, Brisbane City during Lent to Easter 2020.
“He takes my rags”
discarded...
rejected again...
washed
torn
bundled together...
bought at a price...
then,
by hand
working with what I have:
discarded rags
cotton thread
from a half used roll
ric-rac and leftover buttons from a friend
paint and pens...
stitching
weaving
folding and encasing
cutting
fraying
covering and revealing...
rags
worked together
into a new creation...
stretched and laced
supported and held
by a canvas
painted red...
transformation!
[SR]
Geraldine Wheeler, convener of “Visionaries” wrote in the catalogue essay for the Transformation exhibition:
“Sharon Roberts’ He takes my rags, which is constructed into patterns from discarded rags, carries a range of symbolism. One layer of this is ... that which is thrown away is again useful.
The worn and apparently useless is not rejected by the love of God.” [GW]
When I started this artwork in February of 2020, COVID 19 was just starting to reach Australia and now, part way through the exhibition, the galleries are closed and physical distance and isolation are key strategies to reduce the spread of this virus. As we make changes to our daily lives and interactions, and some pay a very high cost through loss of employment, and while thousands grieve the loss of their loved ones, as a society we declare by our actions that people who are vulnerable, aged, frail and already unwell, are people who have value and worth and we will protect them as best we can. We reflect in our actions as a nation the truth, that the worn and marginalised are not rejected by the love of God, and they are not rejected by us.
Let’s continue to care and to connect as we are able, and to pray that God would take our rags and bring his transformation. God bless you this Easter. [SR]