Art Book "Stitch The Self"

Stitch the Self emerges from a deeply personal and artistic inquiry into identity, belonging, and transformation. This art book grows out of my Capstone research grounded in a/r/tography - an arts-based methodology that weaves together my roles as artist, researcher, and art therapy intern. Over time, I have come to understand artmaking not only as expression, but as a way of listening inward, reflecting through the body, and slowly generating meaning through touch and attention.

My immigration journey began with both hope and quiet uncertainty. Leaving Vietnam was not a single moment, but a gradual emotional crossing. I arrived in Canada carrying memories, responsibilities, and the ongoing work of adapting to a new cultural landscape while caring for my children. Living between Vietnam and Canada, I have come to experience identity as fluid, layered, and sometimes unsettled.

Before this path, I worked as an entrepreneur in the marketing service industry - a space defined by speed, clarity, and outward performance. Transitioning into visual art and later into art therapy required me to step into uncertainty and vulnerability. There were many moments of doubt, especially in midlife, when I questioned whether I could begin again. Yet the quiet call toward making remained.

Stitching became that place of return. Through slow stitching, embroidery, and textile assemblage, I found a way to sit with my experiences rather than resolve them too quickly. This process naturally shaped my art therapy approach. My work is grounded in mindfulness-based art therapy, where attention to breath, repetition, and sensory experience creates a space of presence and regulation. It is also informed by positive art therapy, which focuses on resilience, strengths, and the gentle cultivation of meaning through creative practice. Additionally, my connection to land, natural materials, and ecological awareness informs an eco-relational approach, where relationships between self, environment, and place become part of the healing process.

The works in this book were created through mindful and repetitive making. I was not seeking perfection, but presence. Through thread, fabric, and found materials, I began to revisit memories, cultural narratives, and emotional experiences that had long remained unspoken. Stitching became both metaphor and method - a way of mending, connecting, and reimagining the self.

This book does not offer a conclusion about identity. Instead, it documents an ongoing process of becoming. The stitched works, reflective texts, and poetic fragments are presented as interconnected threads within a larger narrative of self-inquiry. Together, they form a visual and textual journey between personal memory and reflective understanding.

It is my gentle hope that readers may find resonance in these pages - a reminder that identity, like fabric, is shaped through layers, tensions, and careful stitches over time. Through the quiet act of making, we may begin to see ourselves more clearly, and to imagine new ways of belonging in the world.