Bernadette Lajtman

Bernadette Lajtman’s series Miracle of Life addresses the emotional hardships experienced by women when their bodies and reproductive rights are policed by authorities and the government. This body of work incorporates crocheted and sewn forms, interwoven with wire armatures made from coat hangers. Lajtman aims to create an incongruity and perversion of traditional women's crafts by exploiting the associations that yarn and thread hold. Each piece plays on the artist’s anxieties and frustrations surrounding pregnancy and motherhood, suggesting that the “miracle of life” loses its sanctity when it is forced.

Bernadette Lajtman is a graduating student in the sculpture stream of the joint Art & Art History program at the University of Toronto Mississauga and Sheridan College. With a background in drawing, Lajtman now creates sculptural works that incorporate textiles. Lajtman’s current interest is in exploring representations of the body as well as the personal relationship between the body and mind.