John Paradiso
Soft Cameo, 2024
Hand-Stitched whole cloth hand-dyed quilt with custom pansy appliques, cotton batting, cotton fabric back, and fabric hardener. 43.5 x 36 x 2.5 inches
Portrait of my Nephew's Boyfriend Mitch, (mounted on fabric-covered foam board with fabric hardener on the pansy background and pink cloth outer frame the figure remains soft.)
John Paradiso
Pink Around the Edges, 2024
Hand-stitched whole cloth quilt with custom pansy appliqué with cotton batting and thread. 20 x 20 x 1 inches
My use of pansy imagery is derived by its historical significance as a disparaging term for a man or boy who was considered either effeminate or homosexual. The irony is that the pansy is a very hardy flower. A term once meant to be ugly and hurtful remaining resistant and pretty.
John Paradiso
My Husband and I, Two Aging Pansies, 2025
a small whole cloth quilt with custom pansy applique, cotton batting, cotton back, hand stitched. In floater frame. 12.5 x 15.5 x 1.75 inches
I am concerned that my marriage will be overturned by the Supreme Court. My Husband and I were partner’s long before Marriage Equality. We are old and in love. I use pansy imagery for its historical significance as a disparaging term for a man or boy who was considered either effeminate or homosexual. The irony is that the pansy is a very hardy flower. A term once meant to be ugly and hurtful remaining resistant and pretty.
