Mónica Leitão Mota

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Textiles can simply be translated by a thread, a surface or a texture (or a set of everything put together). For me, textile means texture and lineation.

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I'm interested in exploring the use of thread to draw lines and create texture and detail. The graphic and marked lines I create with thread while using the lowest speed of the sewing machine is something that is a constant in my work.

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Photography and image manipulation are usually where I start my creative process, and screen-printing with photo emulsion are my chosen and favourite techniques.

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 I use recycled fabrics, paper, organza and screen-printed mesh to create layers of textured surfaces, and I then draw on those layers with thread using free-motion machine stitching to create even more texture, connecting all the printed surface layers with those graphic lines.

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This graphic, textural and linear part of my way of expressing, this seeking of light and shadow contrasts and variations, I believe it has plenty to do with my background studying Sculpture in Porto, Portugal.