plumb and fathom is inspired by the networks of care and solidarity that biological and chosen families provide each other. Its tubular pathways evoke the plumbing systems of domestic interiors and bodily anatomy, but its title’s dual meanings also suggest understanding and love. Both “plumb” and “fathom” suggest a process of comprehension through close examination. “Fathom” derives from an Old English word meaning “outstretched arms,” and while its noun form now describes a unit (roughly fingertip to fingertip) to measure the depth of water, it once meant to embrace someone in a hug.

A line drawing in space, the sculptural installation connects a variety of objects—a young family member’s cast hand, a conch shell—that the artists consider symbols for family planning and parenting. Woven throughout the installation are the threads from sea change, a textile colored with natural dyes derived from plants and herbs, including those used to manage fertility. The color and choreography of the threads allude to the “green wave,” a phrase that refers to both the timing of a series of traffic lights to allow continuous traffic flow and to abortion-rights movements in the Americas. Resisting a literal interpretation, the artists open space for conversation about current topics involving migration, family planning, and political movements. As the tides of culture and politics shift, the artists center the idea that biological and chosen families and communities have always invented systems of care for each other.

The installation’s playful structure recalls a bead maze, the ubiquitous baby toy, while also reflecting on the improvised workarounds of grassroot networks of support. By connecting disparate symbols, plumb and fathom visualizes complex constellations of relationships.

Casts of the artist's mother's hands display a hand embroidered and painted found blanket

A tracing of our handwriting flashes DAMMITIMMAD, palindrome (a word, phrase, or sequence that reads the same backward as forward).

Present Company, BK, NY

Photos by Craig Smith courtesy of ASU Art Museum

Photos by Craig Smith courtesy of ASU Art Museum

Photos by Craig Smith courtesy of ASU Art Museum

Photos by Craig Smith courtesy of ASU Art Museum

Photos by Craig Smith courtesy of ASU Art Museum

Photos by Craig Smith courtesy of ASU Art Museum

Photos by Craig Smith courtesy of ASU Art Museum

Photos by Craig Smith courtesy of ASU Art Museum