Cassie Arnold

Artist Statement

My work explores the unspoken and taboo topics connected to my life as a woman and a caregiver. By using traditional fiber techniques, like hand knitting, my hope is to challenge and change some of the cultural narratives that attempt to confine these identities. My recent practice incorporates performance based and interactive work where the connection between my body, the concept, the fiber, and the audience can begin to merge as one. I utilize video and photography to document the honest process from start to finish so that the story becomes a part of the art. Humanity is reflected in each piece so that every person feels welcome to engage in an open and unashamed way. My goal is to call viewers into a conversation about the fundamental ideas surrounding females, their bodies, their care, their work, and their lives.

I have been caretaking for my sick father for the past few years. It has been difficult to stay positive throughout all of the moments that often come with caring for a loved one: the cleaning, the serving, the listening. For this series, I am knitting 4x4 swatches (a common practice to learn your unique tension tendencies) while my father and I sit together and chat in waiting rooms. Once finished, I am taking the swatches home to knit them large-scale. My hope is to magnify the more mundane aspects of caretaking, to focus on and carefully plan out where we are going. I don’t want to just rush to the final piece this time. There is art in the process.