Mathea Madsen

Mathea Madsen

Homeward Bound

2020

Thread, block prints, photocopies, glue

33" x 42.5"

Homeward Bound is a representation of the fragile comfort that comes with dreaming about a future. Featuring personal letters, and block printed houses, this piece is a quilt made of paper. There is something nostalgic and comforting about quilts, usually passed down, becoming worn overtime through use. It is the same with writing letters, it calls back to a past communication we often overlook in our busy world. In a conversation with my last piece, Homefront, these two works are two different sides of one coin. Whereas Homefront was about the fear and uncertainty that comes with the future, Homeward Bound is about the hope and romantic notions that come when we begin to dream. Although paper is fragile and could be torn, it often withstands the test of time. This quilt can not be used in a traditional sense; it is a symbol, something to tuck away in an attic and be remembered and thought about during our darkest times. Although the world can be uncertain and scary, there is always room to dream of days to come, and there is a sense of comfort inherently in that act.