Amy Rusch
Embroiderer
Cape Town, South Africa
Stitching time into plastic
- Amy constructs textile creations with waste plastic
- Her process does not involve adhesives or heat, only hand stitching
- She creates all of her works from her home studio in Simon's Town
Using a sewing machine, Amy Rusch stitches through multiple layers of collected waste plastic to constructs textile works. By adjusting the bobbin tension, she draws thread from beneath the surface to create dots and raised marks on the face of the work. Bright colours such as fiery oranges and luminous pinks are loaded onto the bobbin so that only vibrant colour pulls through. Amy never buys plastic: she collects it from roadsides or beaches, or from people familiar with her work, who save and donate the material. "No two of my pieces are identical," she says. Amy also works with sail cloth by laying it flat, and stitching tracings of the marks the wind has left in the cloth. "My works as vibrational sound drawings, as I consistently work in collaboration with natural elements," she explains.
Discover her work
INTERVIEW
My work often depicts elemental experiences, such as sailing, wind, archaeology, sediment and sound. Time, as something circular rather than linear, is another recurring theme embodied in the plastic itself.
I have collected plastic bags since I was a child: objects that are thrown away seemed precious to me. No two bags are identical, which makes the material feel rare.
I developed the capacity to zoom in and out throughout the making process, and gain different points of perspective. The hours I spend stitching help me clarify my thoughts.
My pieces can be ambiguous and clear at the same time, an oscillation that does not need to resolve into something specified. I hope that by getting lost in these abstract works, viewers find clarity.
