APRIL 2026
CENTER GALLERY
Transitional Objects | Amy Meissner
My work with abandoned textiles explores the literal, physical, and emotional work of women. I’ve been a mother for two decades and it’s difficult for me to disentangle my caregiving experiences and feelings from these materials originally made by unknown mothers, aunts, grandmothers -- all caregivers as well. In the mid-20th century, a British psychoanalyst introduced the term “transitional objects” to describe chosen things that act as a bridge between child and caregiver, easing anxiety and providing emotional well-being during separation, such as a blanket or doll. The transitional objects in this space represent my overactive mothering mind, combining the ridiculous with the terrifying in an attempt, over hours and months of making, to soothe myself from worst-possible outcomes. The variations provided invite the viewer to consider other variations, or what their own object might look like. In this way, the collection explores the lineage of use value in women’s work, the literal overproduction by hand in past eras now shifting to a state of heightened emotional labor, an over-mothering just as prolific.
Photographs by Hans Hallinen