Teens to mid-twenties
I will share my items with the slightest ambiguity to remain an element of “keeping them personal.” As they describe specific time periods of my life and some contain elements of identification or addresses. The items shared are life columns, they are anchors to the stories I lived from 2011 till 2022. AN 11 year hold, where purchases were made, countries and cities were explored and the transition from teen years to early adulthood and mid-twenties grounding.
The first object is a Desigual backpack circa 2011. I bought this backpack for my first year in high school. I bought it with my own money and was excited to spend my first 30 on a backpack.
Money was not tight in 2011. As a family we were doing better than ever and I would say we were rich. The house was nice, I was able to go out at any moment without having to share a vehicle or space, it was an easier time. My siblings and I had just come back from Egypt, because my oldest sister was living there with her husband. At that time we all came back for Ramadan to spend it together as a collective family. I remember working during that ramadan, having the ability to freely enjoy my time, without any circumstances. The bag HOLDS; the backpack is the time capsule.
Graduation (December, 18th, 2020) I finally finished Architecture school with all the trails, family drama, moving more than four times and barely passing by. I finished Architecture school, but to my surprise, I finished during COVID-19 Pandemic, which meant I presented my thesis project on zoom, I argued for my grades on zoom and never was able to work in the studio, barely had enough income and the school did not want to send me an at home PC, because they were picking and choosing what students, deserve what. I was ecstatic and happy to make it out alive from NYIT.
THE SKIRT: Flowy, asymmetrical and constructed by hand, sewing machine and it was my first time learning how to thread a machine, how to cut on fabric to fit a body and how to sew in general. I took a class in the school of the art institute of chicago in Fall of 2022 (Fashion construction 1). It was the midterm project and I remember panicking, memories of being back in Architecture school, working in the studio overnight and trying to finish, but the work was never done. It was a proud moment, since I’ve always wanted to learn how to sew and construct garments, soft sculptures and interactive fibers.
