We had measured and approximated that the ultimate piece would need to be just over 18’x15’. We therefore decided to use a modular approach. We sorted until we had sets of 12 optimally matched fabric samples, then each set was hand-trimmed and sewn into a unit of 3x4 tiles. With 132 units, we then intuitively composed a colour gradient, adjusting and arranging the architectural tapestry from a grand total of 1584 discarded samples. When each fragment was nestled into its place in the larger rhythm, the piece was complete. We installed the final piece at Surmesur’s storefront, the source location of the fabric, in downtown Montreal on April 21, 2025, at 4:00am.
From there, we began a long and careful process: removing composition tags as a physical archive of material origin, then meticulously sorting by colour. With the overwhelming majority of our inventory consisting of blues and greys, weeks were spent dividing and further subdividing based on hue, tone, shade and tint, eventually sorting the chaos into structured harmony. This process of sorting became a way of noticing, and noticing became a form of care. The thousands of suit samples attest to an invisible mass production, providing evidence of global capitalist systems. Removed from the algorithmic decisions of the fashion industry, we
came to appreciate the beauty and integrity of each piece of fabric. We uncovered a myriad of nuances in colour and texture that shifted in different lights. As each tile produced an atmospheric fragment, the process of textile taxonomy awakened our understanding of textiles as more than decorative or interior-bound. Our reliance on intuition to assemble our installation represents a sensitivity to our emotional disposition, introducing a human and non-linear artistic process. It is an act of resistance to the advancements towards an increasingly streamlined and mechanized design and production process.
all images: sierra dustin + chloe watkinson
41 on site review 47 :: standing still
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