It’s (Not) Hard to Sleep Standing Up

A lengthy exercise in Craigslist searching and surface experimentation, It’s (Not) Hard maintained a presence throughout most of my practice last year. Stretching the piece across half the academic year, I had originally simply been interested in painting different surfaces. But as soon I proposed acquiring a mattress, the project became a far deeper exploration, and a number of questions arose. What is a mattress to you? To your friends, and countless others in your surroundings? Can you create some value in this discarded, Craigslist-ed object and what would it mean to do this, considering the aforementioned questions?

Stemming from constant talk of and desire for sleep and peace, the project pulls imagery, text, and objects from experiences, humorous or troubling, mine or otherwise. With many sessions of hesitation and indecision regarding my approach to an object so physically and socially heavy, the documented state of this piece is only a work in progress. In the end, It’s (Not) Hard is probably best presented with little of my own description, left only to sit upright in a room near you.