Life’s Labyrinth
is my term for the endless series of decisions we have to make and the obstacles we face throughout our lives. Idioms connected to life’s paths informed how I sculpted these garments using mobius strips. I became fascinated with how much I could manipulate a strip and still have a shape with one face and one edge. I linked this to a labyrinth having one entrance and one exit, and these forms came to symbolize life’s complexity. This project then grew into my way of making peace with life and loneliness, with each sculpt representing a step in my process of walking this path alone.
Choose-your-own-adventure novels and folding fortune tellers inspired the creation of a folding hexagon booklet with prompts to guide participants through the story in a way unique to them. This mirrors the creation of a unique path through a maze, as no two people make exactly the same choices at each prompt.
example of differing paths through simple maze
What is a Mobius Strip?
At a Crossroads
Life is a series of obstacles, and realizing that every problem is one of a long series freed me up from a lot of anxiety. Life doesn’t follow a set path or plan. I can see my choices of how to respond going in two directions: take control or let go. I know that the path will never be straightforward and will eventually change, and the plan will have to change. I have to let go and allow the path to take whatever form it needs to. I have to allow for a break in the path that allows something new to emerge.
This mobius has been manipulated by combining multiple infinite surfaces into a continuous shape by joining the faces at 90 degrees. Rigid lines with a raised profile evoke a traditional maze in a defined texture that represents the clarity of seeing obstacles around one’s self, and fine details of hand stitching represent being able to notice the beauty in small details as one gets lost in the moment.
full pictograph to create this shape:
A Fork in the Road
The sense of freedom that comes with being an individual that makes any loneliness worth it. I have so many strong memories of the moment I finally got to be alone and myself, and the way the pure joy and relief manifested in wanting to break into a run. That joy only increased when I could see the other options I’d avoided, and knowing in that moment it really was worth it to fight to carve out a new path for myself. This is what being an individual feels like at its core: knowing the pain was so worth it that you can’t help but want to run further away and become even more of an individual.
The mobius of this look has been manipulated so that it splits and creates a mobius in each direction, representing taking a unique path for the first time. The strip has been sculpted around the body to distort the silhouette with directional lines of topstitching transforming into organic lines as they are shaped around the body. These lines transforming from flat to 3D symbolizes coming into one’s own.
full pictograph to create this shape:
Spiraling
I’ve been using the mantra of “move a muscle, change a thought” for years as a way to break a mental spiral. Physically moving the body and changing positions really does change one’s mindset. This mantra applies in a figurative sense as well. When I change how I approach a situation and move outside expectations, something new happens. The cycle breaks and I can replace it with something better. There are cycles that can’t be broken and all I can do is remove myself. This severs the connection by subverting expectations as most people are afraid to be alone. But if I’m in a cycle that can’t be broken, I would genuinely prefer to be alone and am not afraid to move outside that circle.
This mobius has been manipulated to loop around itself, and the loop being able to move represents the ways a cycle can be changed. This look symbolizes setting boundaries through the creation of grids, and the subverting of expectation through lines being mirrored on black and white surfaces.
full pictograph to create this shape:
Parallel Paths and More
Having to carve out a path for myself led me to overthink and obsess over the consequences of each action. But recently I started seeing signs that I was safe and could let my guard down. I could stop looking for the best path to take and instead get lost in the moment. I could rejoice in my ability to be alone while being grateful for the path I’d taken when viewed as a whole, knowing that I’m always doing my best with what I know at the moment. Life may be a series of obstacles but the moments in the spaces between the problems make the path. The obstacles shape the path but don’t define it. This feeling of being at peace with the labyrinth has allowed me to enjoy the path I’ve created for myself and see where the path takes me instead of obsessing over direction.
As I continued to work on the collection, it increasingly expanded outwards from the body. First with the creation of digital prints, booklets, pictographs, and interactions to guide understanding. It then grew into creating shoes, earrings, bracelets, and face masks inspired by Op-Art and Surrealism for each sculpt. Finally I began prototyping an interactive living exhibit and performance to bring all these elements together in one presentation.
Parallels Pictograph: