red, hand crocheted yarn ropes = intestines, umbilical cords, tethers between generations, bonds, bloodlines & ancestry, epigenetic inheritance & the biochemical processes of DNA expression (methylation), the womb, fibroids, scar tissue & other fibrous masses that build up in the uterus & cause illness, the closing out of cycles, snake (9) years, shedding, regeneration, interconnectedness, “a 3 strand cord is not easily broken” (Ecclesiastes 4:12), string theory (mother/daughter universes & wounds)…
methylation: “Methylation is a chemical modification of DNA and other molecules that may be retained as cells divide to make more cells. When found in DNA, methylation can alter gene expression. In this process, chemical tags called methyl groups attach to a particular location within DNA where they turn a gene on or off, thereby regulating the production of proteins that the gene encodes.” (https://www.genome.gov/genetics-glossary/Methylation)
“Methylation is a first-line essential biochemical process in the transmission of life, playing a critical role in modification of DNA and histones. It is involved in regulating gametogenesis, embryonic and placental growth, as well as imprinting and epigenesis. Inhibition by miRNA should be considered a second-line level of regulation. Gametes transfer not only DNA but also information for the regulation of early and late embryo development as well as ancestral history, skills, and endocrinology.”
i’ve been pursuing this concept of wholeness having weight (reference: Toni Cade Bambara’s The Salt Eaters), heft, a state of being that requires bearing, just as hips must bear the weight of an expanding uterus and the growth of new life. i’ve also become fixated on the juxtaposition of “hard” and “soft” as both material substances and life experiences, and especially fascinated by the contradiction of soft, light objects and experiences being hefty, heavy, requiring strength and stamina to maintain and hold. “a lot of weight when you’re well” is a statement that i continue to bring into material form.
first and last photos: Alex Munro