Art Initiatives
Creativity isn’t just something I write about—it’s something I live, create, and share. My art initiatives use fiber arts, storytelling, and community participation to explore healing, identity, and social change.
Mandalas for Marinke
A deeply personal and community-driven project, Mandalas for Marinke began as a tribute to crochet designer Marinke Slump, who died by suicide in 2015. What started as a small blog project quickly grew into a global movement, with over 300 crocheters from around the world contributing mandalas to raise awareness about depression, suicide, and the healing power of craft. The project led to a year-long daily blog series, a coffee table book, and multiple art exhibitions featuring interactive elements like healing circles, readings, workshops, and even pet therapy. Mandalas for Marinke continues to be one of the works I am most proud of—it was a way for so many people to express grief, share their own stories, and turn personal pain into collective healing.
In My Fluffy Pajamas / In My Feathered Pajamas
In collaboration with artist and social practitioner Badri Valian, In My Fluffy Pajamas is a multi-iteration participatory art project that explores themes of migration, displacement, resilience, and belonging. Rooted in Badri’s personal experience of leaving behind beloved belongings—including a cherished pair of fluffy pajamas—when immigrating to the U.S. from Iran, the project creates spaces for others to process their own stories of movement and loss. Through co-storytelling, fiber art, photography, and interactive workshops, participants visually and verbally express their migration experiences.
The project has expanded into In My Feathered Pajamas, which brings these stories into public spaces through performance, installation, and community engagement. Participants collect crocheted feathers scattered along pathways—symbolizing the disruptions of migration—and bring them to a communal nest, which eventually transforms into a wearable feathered robe representing sanctuary and resilience.
Liberty Crochet Mural
A powerful example of craftivism, the Liberty Crochet Mural is a nationwide initiative using fiber art to advocate for reproductive rights and social justice. The Northern California edition of the mural consists of a massive 17’ x 11’ crochet artwork depicting Lady Liberty holding a uterus, symbolizing autonomy and bodily rights. The project was launched in response to the overturning of Roe v. Wade and has been displayed at multiple public locations, including the Women Rising exhibit at Drawing Room SF.
As of 2024, I’ve taken on a leadership role in organizing the mural’s future exhibitions, ensuring it remains a visible, evolving piece of activism and collective resilience. I also had the honor of speaking on a panel of five women discussing reproductive justice for Women’s Month 2024, furthering the conversation on how art intersects with activism and social change.
Substack Blackout Poetry Project
A different kind of collaborative creative project, this global exchange of blackout poetry brought together over 40 participants from Substack. The project was an experiment in spontaneous creativity, connection, and reimagining text—participants altered existing pages into new poetic forms, then exchanged them through physical mail. The final collection became a beautiful testament to how art can connect people across geography and background.
Other Creative Work
Beyond large-scale initiatives, I work across multiple creative mediums, including crochet, collage, and photography. These personal projects explore the intersection of mental health, creativity, and daily life, and I plan to launch a portfolio showcasing these works soon.