Inspired By: a Fur-Lined Teacup

I was recently asked if Meret Oppenheim’s fur-lined teacup, inspired Blackty Black Blanket.

According to the MOMA,  Object was inspired by a conversation between Oppenheim, Pablo Picasso, and photographer Dora Maar at a Paris café. Admiring Oppenheim’s fur-trimmed bracelets, Picasso remarked that one could cover just about anything with fur. “Even this cup and saucer,” Oppenheim replied.

Blackty Black Blanket came about by completely by happenstance. I tossed a partially finished zip tie blanket onto the white chaise in my studio and turned around to work on the computer. Later when i got up to leave the room and saw the blanket draped on the chaise, I did a double take and knew the Chaise and blanket belonged together.

I lost a comfortable place in my studio to lounge but gained a subtle yet powerful way to communicate how discomforting microaggressions feel.

Blackty Black Blanket, 2020