Mourning III: Third Veil

Cotton thread, hand-dyed with indigo, stitched on indigo-dyed paper, 11x28 cm (to preserve the deckled egde, but it can be trimmed to match the dimensions of the rest of the series).



In the tatreez tradition, women signalled mourning by wearing dresses embroidered in nothing but indigo (which inspired my pieces Veils of Mourning I and II). Only when ready to emerge from grief, did they start integrating red details again: This idea drove the series of studies for a follow-up series. Through the six studies, red thread makes its way back into the pattern in different ways because despite everything, Life returns.

In the Third Veil, stitched with cotton over light indigo paper, madder-dyed silk introduces the word حياة (Life) in the pattern: it takes up exactly the same square as حداد (Mourning).

More info & photos: https://majnouna.com/portfolio/veilsofmourning/