Abstracts Maps and Languages
Neh-moh-KON, Boh-goh-TA- ee- Meh-deh-DJEEN
2014
This embroidery is part of Paternal / Paternal a collection of embroideries that celebrates the places where my family has migrated, the languages related to these locations, and the memory that has passed from generations. This embroidery involves mapping by using the latitude and longitude of these locations.
The title Neh-moh-KON, Boh-goh-TA- ee- Meh-deh-JEEN is spelled phonetically as it’s pronounced in Spanish so that English speakers can pronounce it perfectly. Therefore the title will always be pronounced perfectly in Spanish. This embroidery was made by hand and by a sewing machine. The lips correspond to the movement of the mouth saying the word family in Spanish, “Familia”. Each set of lips in the embroidery represents one syllable or vowel sound of that word. The two sets of lips on the right side correspond to the latitude and longitude of Nemocón. The lips on the bottom correspond to the latitude and longitude of Bogotá, the lips on the top left correspond to the latitude and longitude of Medellín. These sets of lips map the men of my family’s migration from Nemocón to Bogotá and to Medellín: my great grandfather and my grandfather were from Nemocón, a town known for its Salt Mine and trains, my dad from the center of the country and capital Bogotá, and my brother who moved to the city of eternal Spring, Medellín, Colombia. The locations of these places are represented by the location of each set of lips on the embroidery. The lines in the fabric act as a trace for the distance and time of their journeys.