Macho Mythos is a pseudo-mythological take on contemporary masculinity; from societal conception through individual internalization.
This series of decorative, quilted objects consists of imagery that satirizes the origins of disgraceful behavior, begging the question, “How historic is our inferior conduct”? This work portrays a universe whose reality is dictated by our contemporary social perceptions around morality and masculinity. The figures in these decorative quilts are fueled by fear, longing, and curiosity, not unlike ourselves. However, their existence in a bygone era suggests their actions may be forgivable, or at least in this case, laughable. Though the narratives of these decorative quilts are not always clear, they are suggestive enough to elicit moral judgment.
How do we comprehend congenial hostility?
Macho Mythos is a response to the feeling of living as a perceived threat. The works are meant to bridge the notions of natural inclination and societal fosterment. It aims to place the viewer within the same liminal states in which the quilted objects exist; between past and present, reality and fiction, art and craft.
These objects are primarily made of commercial cotton and quilted using hand and machine applique techniques. As the nephew of two quilters and son of another, my upbringing was decorated with quilted textile work. In 2021, I became interested in crafts; the histories they suggest and the traditions associated. And so, I began learning the basics of quilting from my mother once a week. She would cook me dinner.
In a way, her influence on this exhibit came long before teaching me how to sew, but as a child, where I got to witness a reasonable person, tirelessly trying to raise two unreasonable boys to become two reasonable men.
P. Albano
This series of decorative, quilted objects consists of imagery that satirizes the origins of disgraceful behavior, begging the question, “How historic is our inferior conduct”? This work portrays a universe whose reality is dictated by our contemporary social perceptions around morality and masculinity. The figures in these decorative quilts are fueled by fear, longing, and curiosity, not unlike ourselves. However, their existence in a bygone era suggests their actions may be forgivable, or at least in this case, laughable. Though the narratives of these decorative quilts are not always clear, they are suggestive enough to elicit moral judgment.
How do we comprehend congenial hostility?
Macho Mythos is a response to the feeling of living as a perceived threat. The works are meant to bridge the notions of natural inclination and societal fosterment. It aims to place the viewer within the same liminal states in which the quilted objects exist; between past and present, reality and fiction, art and craft.
These objects are primarily made of commercial cotton and quilted using hand and machine applique techniques. As the nephew of two quilters and son of another, my upbringing was decorated with quilted textile work. In 2021, I became interested in crafts; the histories they suggest and the traditions associated. And so, I began learning the basics of quilting from my mother once a week. She would cook me dinner.
In a way, her influence on this exhibit came long before teaching me how to sew, but as a child, where I got to witness a reasonable person, tirelessly trying to raise two unreasonable boys to become two reasonable men.
P. Albano