How long have you been working in this space?
Two and a half years.
Describe an average day in your studio.
I work in the evenings and at night, after I finish my day job as a pastry chef. I work on one thing at a time until it’s finished.
How does space influence your work?
My studio is in my house and my house is a small shared apartment in Brooklyn. It is shaped like a wide corridor, with two windows at the front and one at the end. Everything that affects my family life affects my work. In parts of Brooklyn, and in crappy apartments in general, there are always water problems; a few months ago the caulk around the toilet cracked, causing dirty toilet water to leak; later our upstairs neighbors installed a defective bidet and water came through the ceiling; now the sealant on the shower has cracked and water is seeping out every time we use it. In my studio I constantly think about water.
How do you deal with the environment outside your studio?
I am most involved in my neighborhood through aspects of my food practice: I have baked to raise money for a local community supported agriculture business, sold kimchi at a nearby bar, and been part of community markets.
What do you like about your studio?
I usually work at a desk in my living room; my partner and I bought the desk in pieces off Craigslist from a woman who lived on Canal Street. It had belonged to her father and halfway through the refinishing she left the project and sold it to us. We have most of it finished except for the side drawers; it has a huge amount of storage space and a built-in bookshelf and is a great place to sit and sew. Above the desk hangs a print of Maia Ruth Lee that I won in a lottery, something very special. It’s the only lottery I’ve won in my life. On the desk is one of my favorite objects: a rock with a hole in it, just big enough to make a pen holder.
What do you wish was different?
When I work at night and the window is open, I hear the rats that live in the garden behind ours. When the sun goes down, they move into our yard and all the neighbors’ yards in search of food, to play and to hang out. They can be very loud; our cat, Eggy, always sat in the window watching them and wanted so much to hunt; now, two and a half years later, she’s not that interested because they visit every night.
What is your favorite local museum?
The American Folk Art Museum on the Upper West Side is amazing. Admission is free and it is steps away from Central Park. Their exhibition What that quilt knows about me was one of my favorite shows I saw last year.
What is your favorite art material to work with?
I work a lot with found textiles and I prefer to work with them when they are worn out. Mending is an important part of my embroidery, and it is especially fun when the wear and tear of a textile affects the final product.
