Sewing Pattern book
Sewing Pattern

By Lise Melhorn-Boe
with poem by Alexandra Cussons
Kingston, Ontario, Canada: Transformer Press, 2018. Edition of 30.

10 x 7.25"; 17 pages. Printed on Canson Infinity Rag paper, rag vellum and several types of acid-free card-stock. Sewn binding. Signed and numbered by the artist.

Lise Melhorn-Boe: "I have wanted to make a book with sewing patterns for many years, so was delighted to discover Alexandra Cussons's poem, used with her permission. The poem describes the creation of a woman, who then destroys the pattern to maintain her uniqueness. Cussons is a British poet who won the Poetry Society's Foyle Young Poet of the Year Award in 2011 for this poem. The text of the poem is layered with pattern pieces, hand-illustrated sewing instructions, photos of the body parts and the final figure."

The artist has mingled the three verses of the poem with pattern pieces and assembly instructions. She has also included images of each of the sewn pieces and then the final sewing project.

"Being with her back: …

"Seam up her thighs and with trim,

"Pleat the cups of her ears,…
And, finally "Turn inside out."

$275