Street Address
City, State, Zip
Phone Number
Amanda Botello
Amanda Botello
are you coming home?
2019
Cotton, cotton blends
9.5 x 10 inches
At some point, we all have wished to return to a time from before. Textiles can be a vehicle for that return. They receive more wear and damage when held close, but in return, textiles develop a strong personalized connection to the past. This connection is only realized when returning to it after a period of time.
This project is made entirely from thrift store bed sheets and fabric scraps. Each scrap caught my eye when I first saw it. The nostalgic details sometimes delivering a visceral reaction.
I experienced the same reaction when exposed to Victor Yañez-Lazcano’s collages, which inspired me to make my own paper collages. Then I spent a summer collecting meaningful fabric and collaging with it instead of paper, and then learning to record my reactions with free-motion stitching that mimicked techniques from quilt making.
Through this entire process, I learned there’s a reason we're drawn to nostalgic items. If we can’t revisit the past every now and then, the longing would consume us. I search for fabrics that offer comfort with their sentimentality. Through collage, I can consolidate the pieces that are special to me and react to them on an intimate level. Whether viewers get a similar sense of nostalgia, deja vu, or vague familiarity, I hope my work conveys the meaning that fabric can hold.
Based in Kyle, TX, Amanda Celeste Botello has been exploring collage for the past several years. With an interest in sustainability, she makes use of vintage bedding and scrap fabric to create quilted collages on an intimate scale. Nostalgia, comfort items, and stream of consciousness writing all serve as inspiration. Additionally, Amanda employs the technique of free-motion stitching to bind scraps together with a daydreaming machine-drawn scribble.