Dylan Hawkinson

Artist Statement

My work explores clothing and its relationship to life cycles while examining personal belongings' personification. Clothing’s function inspires me as an artifact of lived experience. I see thrift stores and vintage shops as archives of human activity. Places like Goodwill smell both stale and sweet and serve as sanctuaries to stains and sweat. I ask questions about both psychological and emotional connections to clothing, especially in cases of mourning and remembrance. I showcase garments as human shells that provide access to sensory memory. The material we surround our bodies with transcends the limits of both fashion and function and sets the stage for an earnest inquiry into identity and attachment.

Using a mixture of printmaking, casting, and paper sculpture, I am experimenting with transparency and opacity both materially and intellectually. By utilizing my own lived-in garments, I explore how we manipulate our outward appearance to best match our inner characteristics. I am keeping my practice of working with paper close, as it references the documentation of important information while maintaining a crucial element of fragility.