Stunning Embroidered Fabric Looks Just Like Books And Notebooks, By Candace Hicks

Imagine a regular notebook, but made of fabric, with every word carefully embroidered by hand. That’s the art of Candace Hicks, who turns notebook pages and books into interactive works of art.

The artist shared that her project, "Common Threads," was born from her fascination with literary coincidences she encounters in her readings. “Whenever I see the same word or phrase in two books back-to-back, I make a note of it. We are all familiar with these occurrences, but it allows me to comment on culture. The notebook is so ubiquitous, and yet I hope to provide a new way of looking and thinking about memory,” wrote Candace.

Through her creations, Candace invites us to see ordinary objects in a new way, challenging our perception.

More info: Instagram | candacehicks.com | ivestercontemporary.com | booklyn.org

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In an interview with Pictolic, Candace told us more about herself.

“I’ve been making books for over twenty years, and my interest in the book form stemmed from a love of reading fiction. My ongoing project Common Threads turned me into an accidental embroiderer, and I’ve been making use of that medium for a long time, too. I taught myself to embroider to make this work. 

I love that the materials are readily available, and the method is popular and connected to women and femininity. The history of embroidery is full of instances of political engagement, resistance to oppression, and the preservation of suppressed narratives. The tactility of a fabric book is often associated with young children, but the haptic sense is something we never grow out of. I hope to induce people to want to touch my work and think of the experience of reading as a physical act.”

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We were curious to learn more about Candance’s work, to which she wrote: “Notes for String Theory, hand-embroidered pages, confront the existential possibilities of the blank page. The size, format, and color palette of notebook paper are familiar and warped at the same time. From across the room, they appear as flat, linear designs, but upon closer inspection, reveal themselves to be delicately textured. 

Thinking about writer’s block, I began drawing versions of a blank sheet of paper in blue thread onto canvas. Where I had previously embroidered the text and illustrations of my artist’s books, I created a void. Not the first or last to confront the dread of the blank page or to bend writer’s block into subject matter, I have named my humble drawings for the theoretical framework uniting all matter and forces at play in the universe. 

‘Embroider’ is a synonym of ‘embellish,’ but I subvert this decorative expectation by preserving clean, graphic lines.”

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Lastly, the artist added: “My newest work, a narrative quilt, will be part of a group show that celebrates textile art, Golden Thread II, opening in NY April 10 by Bravinlee Projects. I will also be featured in the first-ever Friends Fair in Austin, May 15-17. I’m currently in France working on a Fulbright project about reproductive healthcare, and I am organizing a traveling exhibition of international artists that combine text and textile in their work.”

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