Modern Girl Rocking Chair, 2024

ceramic and found rocking chair, 26 x 46 x 33".

Project Statement

Using handbuilt ceramic tiles and a refurbished rocking chair, Modern Girl Rocking Chair explores motifs of the 1920s the “new woman” or modern girl, confident and poised, with her bobbed hair, fashionable attire, and defiant gaze. She exudes the spirit of liberation and empowerment following the ratification of the 19th Amendment giving women the right to vote. The tiles of the chair combine representational portraits of the modern girl, with her bold makeup and swirled hair, with more whimsical and expressive patterns adding a bit of edge. The black and white color scheme adds to the piece’s emphasis on the 1920s modern girl, encapsulating a vintage feel reminiscent of film stills. 

Using a rocking chair as the substrate for the tiles is very intentional as it has strong ties to women’s domestic labor. Decorating the chair with a hand-crocheted seat cushion and fragmented rug pays homage to the reserved, domestic women for that is not something to be diminished, however, transforming the chair into a striking sculpture represents this historic transition and blossoming of the modern girl.