Show Your Bones

It's interesting how bones, although so (literally) embedded in us, lose their humanity when photographed. Maybe it's just me, but their stark whiteness and bizarre shape (could you imagine if, on the outside, we had bars of holes in our chests like our rib cages?) transform them into something alien, too serene and smooth to be human. I just came across two unrelated posts in my RSS the other day, though, that inject color and storytelling into our austere bones. The results are pretty astounding, in two completely different ways.

Our Exquisite Corpse's beaded skulls for LN-CC turn the bones into wildly vibrant works of art. The beading, done in a collaboration with the Huichol craftspeople of Mexico, is so meticulous and intricate that it's almost... inhuman, actually. But at the same time, the designs whisper of centuries of human history. I really want to run my fingers over the skulls and feel the texture of the beads outlining all the grooves!

On the other hand, Matthew Cox's embroidered x-rays soften the osteal harshness with fuzziness and warmth. How pretty are embroidered flowers?! There's so much nostalgia in his work; it's like the bones are remembering the life they once led, the flesh and scenery that once enveloped them. 

And my favorite one out of the bunch... how i'd love to wade through a pond dappled with lilies!

With love,

Sia