Embodied Stitching

To lead us into the Embodied Stitching practice, I added a foraging component to the process I developed in the Fall of 2023. Because I was interested in learning more about how engaging with this land through creative embodied practice influenced awareness of the self and others, I wanted to introduce the participants to the land through a lens of curiosity and care. I determined that dyeing the cloth we would use for stitching would be an appropriate experience-based learning approach and way to mindfully connect with the land and nature. Before harvesting we took the time to give thanks to the plants for our harvest and to closely observe the sumac plant and flowers. We only harvested what we needed.

On the second day of the placement, we followed the Embodied Stitching process, with a prompt to reflect on how engaging with the land through embodied creative practice impacts awareness of the self and others; and to contemplate what arose during that reflection. Participants free wrote for as long as they wanted, and then moved onto stitching on a shared piece of cloth that all participants had contributed to during the shibori stage. Through this experience, AB discovered she needed to let go of being “so attached to the outcome and to trust in the process”.

Participants engaged in the Embodied Stitching process

How the process revealed the truth of multiple perspectives

The surface and the underneath

AB was initially only aware of and focused on the side of the cloth she could see, as opposed to what was happening underneath at the same time. She later reflected on what changing her perspective revealed:

“I know for sure that stitching and then seeing the back side had a profound impact. It held deeper meaning when I saw the way that the stitching manifested from what I had intended it to look like, versus what it looked like on the back. For me, I think it has a lot of implication for my personal practice to remind me of, not only my own complexity, but the beauty in that complexity, and that our lives kind of mirror the stitching in a way…And then also for myself professionally I can see how that practice in particular really mirrors, or is a really great way to embody teaching [the concept of] identity. And having conversations about identity.”

Using shibori techniques, we spent time tying and talking: connecting in community and co-regulating.

We also spent time getting to know the different fabrics through mindfully handling them. We worked with felt (wool) and two weights of cotton: one gauzy and light and the other a tighter and heavier weave. By providing different options participants were provided with choice and the opportunity to follow their intuition and curiosity.