coptic

I just couldnt get this idea out of my head last week, so I had to make it to see what it looked like. I went crazy with the coptic stitch. The book is about 5.5" x 7" and it took about 8 hours total, worked over 3 days. Every stitch was very meditative and satisfying. As I got into a rhythm it reminded me of the breathing practice we do in yoga, called ujjayi breath. It is an audible, hollow sounding breath through the nose used to sooth and focus your attention to your practice. In a sense, this practice demonstrates how the breath can connect your physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual selves together. The sound of piercing the paper and drawing the thread through each opening reminded me of the breath. It created an essence. I recorded the sound to capture this essence. I did a few test rounds then a final round, and after each time I listened to the recording as I continued to stitch the book together so it created this stereo effect- listening to the recording while creating the sound. I thoroughly enjoyed the whole process.