Inventory Methods is an artwork about accretion and subtraction; accumulation and reduction. It is a record of old pajamas discarded as useless and accumulated as rags. It is a record of weights, each tube containing 4 ounces of waste materials: rags. It is a declaration of the beauty that remains in the devalued, worn, discarded. It is a record of an ongoing process of reduction and a questioning of the nature of what, and who, we devalue and discard.
Each tube represent 4 ounces of weight lost: a reduction in body size, a quest for health and a consideration of the pressures on women's bodies to conform to cultural standards. Why have curves become unacceptable? When did fat cease to represent wealth and fertility? When did advanced age become frail and disrespected?
As I lost weight, I wanted to mark the progress, but also name as beautiful that which was subtracted.