Anna Buckner
Liminality is soft. It is malleable, compliant, acquiescent, and
supple. At its worst, it is impressionable, submissive, gullible, and
feeble. At its best, it yields empathy and patience. I find strength
in liminality—in vulnerability.
My work explores vulnerability through materials. Soft, it exists
somewhere between piecework and painting. I select stretchy
fabrics that have a high potential for change when they are
pulled over a support. In their elasticity, materials such as
Spandex and knits reference skin, and pulling these fabrics over
a support causes them to swell like the body. I piece the fabric
scraps together, forming a quilt top that is then stretched on a
support. The initial design of the piecework is compromised
through stretching, causing the material to warp. The support of
the painting is therefore a tool for transformation, revealing the
potential of the materials and pushing them into roles for which
they are not traditionally used.
The balance of existing in a liminal state is precarious. This
unpredictability creates space for transformation, encouraging
growth and expansion.