Below the Surface

Project statement

Solitude as a working method.

I began Below the Surface with the psychological space of a cave: a place where outside noise falls away and the body becomes newly present. Rather than illustrating that environment, I treated solitude as a working method. Repeated lines, compressed surfaces, lacing, curved seams, and controlled volume allowed decisions to accumulate across six bodies. The collection moved between denim and linen, rigidity and collapse, and deliberate pattern systems and the unexpected behavior of cloth. Waxing, distressing, Canadian smocking, asymmetric closures, and hand finishing gave each look evidence of its making. My role extended from research and illustration through pattern development, fitting, construction, and technical documentation. The resolved collection is less a picture of darkness than a record of what can become visible when attention is sustained long enough.