Noah Buyukertas

This piece synthesises my English and Kurdish heritage, combining underwear that is historically accurate to the mid 18th century in England with decoration integral to my Kurdish family. The underwear, symbolic of vulnerability, is embroidered with my family members’ names, memorialising them on English clothing, whilst utilising repetitive embroidery to represent the inherent link between family and my experience of OCD, in the way that I carry out rituals and compulsions to ‘protect’ my family. This embroidery is placed on the stays (early corset), which are often seen today as a symbol of restriction.