Influenced by Gilles Deleuze’s theory of the fold and the Baroque, Vagus experiments with Canadian smocking, a fabric manipulation technique new to my practice, which requires hand stitching to create elaborate folds in the cloth. The vagus nerve is an integral part of the parasympathetic nervous system, carrying signals between the brain, heart and digestive system. Its presence disputes the mind-body dichotomy, and posits the individual as a psychosomatic being. Deliberately employing a labour intensive process, I aim to demonstrate that folds not only live in the surfaces of fabric and skin, but also in the psyche and in time.

“Vagus” is also the Latin word for wandering. The fold activates the feminine lifeforce which is volatile and fluid, tender yet powerful, capable of boundless becoming. In my investigation of softcore violence in kawaii culture, the bishōjo is an integral figure whose cuteness, ambiguously, reflects the embedded misogyny within society and the possibility to subvert objectification at the same time. The fold always occurs in multiples, forming an interface between the inside and outside, depth and surface. Where in-between spaces emerge, female creativity and kinship grow. With a needle in hand, I use the fold as a metaphor of agency which celebrates “women’s work” and the rich textures of life.