Making you feel safe. Smelling like home. Cheering you up. Keeping you company. Helping you sleep. Crying your worries out. Reminding you everything will be okay. They were always there for you.
As children, many of us were given objects that provide comfort in forms of blankets, pacifiers, stuffed animals, and even smelly old rags. Children, parents, students, and teachers were asked to draw comfort objects they had when they were younger. Traces of nostalgic memories were remembered and stories were shared.
What about you?
What’s your comfort object?
I was given a blanket 22 years ago. It became a companion during vulnerable times—comforting me as I journeyed through moves to the West Coast and crossing borders during gap year trips. But, what was once a pristine ocean of colorful fishes is now a faded, torn pile of cotton. It has now become my turn to give it comfort.
How about you?
How are you comforting your object?
Born in Japan, raised in New York, and currently living in Washington, Takae grew up around diversity and exposure to her cultural identity. She will soon graduate from the University of Washington in Seattle with a double major in Psychology and Art (Photo/Media with Honors) in June 2020. She plans to continue higher education with graduate school for couples/marriage and family therapy.
Throughout her life, Takae has fixated on the desire of needing to understand, identify, and connect with her inner and exterior worlds. She is interested in overlapping information in forms of memory, emotion, and systems that shape patterns of behavior. From the language one speaks, the food one eats, thoughts one thinks, Takae attempts to connect various cultures by reconstructing its layers and patterns. Through this process that explores her multicultural background and experiences in the world, Takae utilizes found objects and everyday materials to receive comfort and power in the making.
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