Emotional Baggage Carts – Theda Sandiford

August 30, 2024August 30, 2024

Art in Odd Places 2024: CARE Festival – Join Me and 75 Other Artists in a Chorus of Care!

I’m excited to announce that the Emotional Baggage Cart Parade will be part of Art in Odd Places (AiOP) 2024: CARE Festival, happening from October 18-20, 2024, along 14th Street in Manhattan! Curated by Patricia Miranda and Christopher Kaczmarek, this year’s festival brings together 76 incredible artists and collectives to explore and celebrate the concept of “CARE” in all its forms.

Art in Odd Places is a unique festival where art breaks out of traditional spaces and takes over the streets, and I am thrilled to be one of the participating artists this year. This year’s theme, CARE, invites us to pause and reflect on questions like: Who do we give care to? What is worthy of our care? When can care be too much? And can we extend our care beyond ourselves, our families, and even beyond our species?

For my piece, the Emotional Baggage Cart Parade, I’m inviting everyone to come together and confront the psychological burdens we carry daily. By transforming ordinary shopping carts into mobile art installations, this parade offers a powerful metaphor for the emotional baggage we all carry. The goal is to create a communal space where participants can symbolically release these burdens, fostering empathy, connection, and healing. I’m eager to share this experience with you all!

A Preview of the Festival

Let me give you a sneak peek at some of the other powerful works you’ll encounter at the AiOP 2024 CARE Festival:

Fungal Entanglement by the Lichen Likers is a wearable fabric sculpture activated by performance, encouraging us to care for the non-human citizens of New York City. Join them for an embodied experience that opens up new ways to connect with the environment we all share.
COAST/LINES by Earthworks, featuring Catherine Chen and Cristina Bartley Dominguez, is a moving performance that addresses the tensions and burdens of our changing landscapes by slowly transporting a boulder sculpture through the city.
Coneheads by Giannina Gomez offers a playful yet poignant take on public health and safety in our chaotic urban environment, helping those in need and reminding everyone to stay alert.
you are here by Deirdre Macleod presents an alternative way of navigating and knowing a city through a slow, careful act of drawing and mapping the fragments of 14th Street at a 1:1 scale. It’s a meditative experience that makes us think about what it means to truly see and understand a place.
WASH!: rituals for healing at the laundry line by the WasherWoman Collective is a community installation and story-sharing experience that invites us to witness and honor the contributions of our foremothers, moving through grief towards a future reimagined.
Urban Animist Intervention Ritual Hex by Creatures From The Hole Poetry & Film Collective//Autocracy will roam 14th Street, activating urban “inanimates” and engaging the public in their whimsical and revolutionary “puppet” interventions.

These are just a few of the fantastic works that will be featured at AiOP 2024 CARE. This festival will challenge, inspire, and move us as we think deeply about what it means to care for ourselves, each other, and our world. Full details of all projects, along with the locations and timing of performances, will be released in mid-September, so stay tuned!

Join Us!

Mark your calendars for October 18-20, 2024, and come experience the art, creativity, and deep reflections on care that AiOP 2024 CARE has to offer. I can’t wait to share the streets of Manhattan with all of you in this incredible festival of public art!

See you there, and let’s join together in a chorus of care!

August 3, 2024July 28, 2024

Where is Malibu Kristie?

April 2023, Paracord, ribbon, cool LED lights and various vintage Barbies on gold spray painted recovered shopping cart.
36 x 40 x 24 in — Theda Sandiford “Where is Malibu Kristie?” April 2023, Paracord, ribbon, cool LED lights and various vintage Barbies on gold spray painted recovered shopping cart. 36 x 40 x 24 in

In the 1970s, finding a Black Barbie doll could be quite challenging due to limited availability and prevailing racial attitudes. During this time, the toy market was predominantly geared towards white consumers, and Barbie dolls were primarily produced with Caucasian features.

For Black children who wanted a doll that reflected their own appearance, options were scarce. Many toy stores carried a limited selection of Black dolls, and those that were available often faced issues like lower production quantities, less prominent shelf placement, and sometimes higher prices compared to their white counterparts.

Moreover, societal norms and prejudices influenced both the production and marketing of toys, including dolls. Some toy companies were hesitant to diversify their product lines due to concerns about profitability or fear of backlash from consumers who were not yet ready to embrace racial diversity in toys.

As a result, families seeking Black Barbie dolls in the 1970s had to search more extensively, to find a doll that represented their child’s racial or ethnic identity. This scarcity and the challenges of finding representation in toys underscored the broader social inequalities and cultural biases of the time.

July 23, 2024June 28, 2024

Middle Passage Installation

The Atlantic Slave Trade laid the groundwork for modern capitalism, unfolding in three stages: arms, textiles, and wine from Europe to Africa; enslaved people from Africa to the Americas; and sugar and coffee from the Americas to Europe. The brutal Middle Passage marked the journey of enslaved Africans to the Americas.

As a Caribbean and African American woman, I am still emotionally unpacking my identity through this historical trauma. The metaphorical baggage carts, not fully covered in zip ties, symbolize my ongoing struggle with unresolved emotional baggage, reflecting a deep and personal connection to this painful history.

July 21, 2024June 28, 2024

The Great Resignation at Hunderton Art Museum

Uncontained: Reimagining Basketry

Exhibition Dates: May 19, 2024 – September 2, 2024

Location: Hunterdon Art Museum, 7 Lower Center St, Clinton, NJ

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June 3, 2024April 25, 2024

Navigating Racial Trauma: Weaving Strength through Emotional Baggage Carts

Despite the growing commitment to fostering racial equity, the daily experiences of women of color show little improvement. The persistence of microaggressions remains a stark reality, echoing the challenges faced before the emergence of the BLM movement. These microaggressions carry significant consequences, fostering stress, anger, frustration, self-doubt, and, ultimately, a sense of powerlessness and invisibility. Within this emotional landscape, my Emotional Baggage Carts emerge as vessels for the weight of racial trauma, offering a transformative act of liberation.

Weaving the Sting:

The act of crafting these carts is a powerful mechanism for weaving the sting of daily microaggressions into a tangible form. As I engage in this creative process, the emotional weight of these incidents is incorporated into the cart. This act of making serves as a cathartic release, offering a means to free myself from the constraints imposed by these triggers.

Liberation through Creation:

In the intricate process of weaving, the emotional baggage is not merely contained; it is transformed into a symbol of strength and resilience. The Emotional Baggage Carts become vessels that encapsulate the stories of microaggressions, allowing me to navigate and confront the emotional toll. Through this creative act, I reclaim a sense of agency and freedom, breaking free from the shackles of stress and self-doubt that accompany these daily challenges.

A Transformative Journey:

Each cart becomes a visual representation of the emotional journey, woven with threads of endurance and empowerment. The transformative nature of this creative endeavor serves as a testament to the strength and resilience inherent in women of color. The Emotional Baggage Carts stand not as burdens but as artifacts of triumph over adversity.

In the pursuit of racial equity, acknowledging the persistent challenges faced by women of color is essential. The Emotional Baggage Carts represent more than vessels for racial trauma; they embody a transformative journey toward resilience and empowerment. As microaggressions persist, these carts become symbols of strength, enabling women of color to weave their narratives of endurance and liberation, reclaiming a sense of agency in the face of adversity.

May 23, 2024April 25, 2024

The Great Resignation… Close Up

Made with vintage silk ties and leather belts, paracord, black zip ties & ribbon, LED strip lights, mesh on recycled commercial fishing net and gold spray paint on recovered shopping cart

May 18, 2024April 25, 2024

The Great Resignation Emotional Baggage Cart

While navigating the ups and downs of a soul-draining job and struggling to connect with my Gen Z staff, I found solace and inspiration in the transformational journey of my partner, McCarty. While I remained tethered to the confines of corporate life, McCarty was embracing a newfound freedom in the sun-kissed shores of St. Croix USVI. Abandoning the trappings of Wall Street and Savile Row suits, he embraced a simpler existence, trading in his tailored attire for the comfort of cargo shorts.

In a gesture of generosity, McCarty gifted me his cherished collection of vintage silk ties, an offering that became the raw material for this emotional baggage cart. These ties, once symbols of corporate conformity, now serve as the building blocks for a visual testament to liberation and self-discovery.

“The Great Resignation” stands as a tribute to all those who have dared to prioritize their own well-being over the toxic demands of their work environments. It is a celebration of courage, resilience, and the unwavering pursuit of authenticity. Each element, from the vintage silk ties to the repurposed leather belts I tooled as a teen, speaks to the transformative power of letting go and embracing new beginnings.

Utilizing a diverse array of materials, including paracord, zip ties, ribbon, LED strip lights, and commercial fishing net, I sought to encapsulate the complexity of the emotional baggage carried by individuals on their journey to liberation. The juxtaposition of the opulent silk ties with the utilitarian elements serves as a visual metaphor for the intersection of personal growth and societal expectations.

The recovered shopping cart substrate, adorned with a layer of gold spray paint, serves as a poignant symbol of the consumerist culture that often fuels the relentless pursuit of professional success at the expense of personal fulfillment. By repurposing this symbol of capitalism, I aim to challenge conventional notions of value and redefine the meaning of prosperity in terms of inner fulfillment rather than material wealth.

Ultimately, “The Great Resignation Emotional Baggage Cart” is more than just an art installation—it is a call to action. It invites viewers to reflect on their own relationship with work, success, and self-worth, and to consider the possibility of forging a path guided by authenticity and self-love. It is my hope that this piece will serve as a beacon of inspiration for all those who dare to dream of a life lived on their own terms.

Vintage silk ties and leather belts, paracord, black zip ties & ribbon, LED strip lights, mesh on recycled commercial fishing net and gold spray paint on recovered shopping cart

March 14, 2024February 23, 2024