Lace-like
Punching in a lace border along the paper’s edge emphasizes the material as a shroud rather than as a body. The addition of lace points to a visual cue of the special, sacred, delicacy. It is a feminine symbol of that which is cherished and celebrated.
This body wants to be placed upon a table or a pedestal…
An offering of nourishment
I am inspired by the decorative lace border placed underneath the koliva, an Eastern Orthodox memorial food served at funerals and 40-day and one-year memorials. It is an offering of nourishment to the living and the dead. The addition of lace to this death cake refers in my mind to the mounds under which people are buried. Also, they look like pillows, which remind remaining family members that their loved one asleep, and nourished by their spiritual passage. reminds me also of a baby christening pillow, and a wedding ring pillow. All mark a transition from one state to another. Repose versus enlightenment.
