The photographic montages, printed on archival cotton fabric, are delicately hand embroidered by the artist – individual works taking anywhere between 10-40 hours. Using glittering thread and coloured cotton, the artist follows the contours of branches, leaf patterns and blossoms with tiny backstitch and French knots – mimicking the circulatory system and nerve pathways hidden within the human body.
There are layers of complexity in Casey’s works. Beauty is contrasted with unease and we are uncertain as to whether the subject’s gaze is inward or outward; are they the watched or the watching; hidden or revealed?
Casey’s work makes reference to the historical tradition of memento mori in which a lock of human hair, embroidery, fabric or ribbon is used to decorate the frame or surface area around a treasured photograph.
Patricia Casey was the Winner of the Head On Photographic Portrait Prize in 2006 and has been a finalist almost every year since. Since beginning her exhibiting career in 1999, Casey has been a multiple-prize finalist in numerous national competitions. She is internationally recognized, having had countless solo exhibitions locally and abroad. Her works are held in significant public and private collections.
“We all have an inner core that we don’t reveal, even to those we are most intimate with. Little secrets that we keep to ourselves. Mental landscapes inaccessible to others. This work is very much about being alone with yourself. Finding peace in the quiet. A time to process life” (Patricia Casey, 2013).
