About Ciara O’Connor 

I am a Kerry based visual artist who works with textiles and embroidery.

My work is figurative and deals with themes of identity, nostalgia, relationships, and feminism.

I use a combination of hand stitching, free motion embroidery and raw-edged appliqué to create my thread drawings. The slow, meditative nature of hand stitching allows time to become intimately connected with what I am making. The speed and fluidity of machine stitching allows for a more intuitive, expressive outcome and instant gratification. They are equally important to me.

I use vintage fabrics or material that I have a personal connection to. I work from both sides of the fabric. This enables me to manipulate the thread to control mark making.

When I stitch, I am aware of how my actions mirror those of my mother, my grandmother and others that have gone before me. I relish that connection. I work in a medium associated with femininity and domestic labour, but to me it represents my desire to break free from those same preconceptions and constraints.

Brazen

As a young girl, the word brazen had negative connotations. It conjured up images of the brazen hussy, the jezebel, a woman without shame. Bold and brash with loose morals. She did and said as she pleased. A woman who loved herself.

Upon mature reflection we know this to be a doctrine of control.

‘Brazen’ is a collection of stories about the theft of consent and the subsequent practice of emotional repair. It is about resilience, defying patriarchal ideology, self-forgiveness and learning to silence shame.

The fabrics used in the making of this work are part of my personal heritage. Every fabric and stitch choice are carefully considered. Some stitches fortify, some protect and some house secrets.

This is a woman’s work.

FAIRE magazine online journal • Instagram: thewitchthread