Baby Yurt. 2025

Wood, Metal, Fabric, Herbal Hangings, Glass, Wool Decor.

About 5ftx5ftx5ft.

Sculpture 2025

Multimedia (Metal, Wood, Textile)

Professor Katie Delaney

This space is intended as a site for reflection and re-centering. In approaching this project, I worked through a child’s lens, asking myself: What would baby Emma love? This question guided both the material choices and the overall atmosphere of the installation.

The work began with small felt hangings in playful shapes and colors—cherries, lemons, stars, and moons—referencing early childhood imagery and tactile comfort. For the drapery enveloping the structure, I used recycled fabrics, including a white sheet and repurposed garments in red, blue, and purple. These materials introduce a darker, yet whimsical energy, balancing softness with depth.

To further illuminate the space, I created bottle hangings that hold tea lights. This element was inspired by Mama Odie’s environment in The Princess and the Frog, evoking warmth, magic, and ritual. The installation is completed with dried herbs such as chamomile, sage, and holy basil, which engage the senses and draw the viewer more fully into the present moment.

I titled this work Baby Lotus, as the process of creating it became an act of healing my inner child. As a child, I was deeply imaginative and often sought refuge in small, enclosed spaces where I could retreat from the outside world and create my own. Playground tunnels, tree houses, and hidden corners became sites of wonder and safety. These early experiences shaped my enduring affection for intimate spaces—places that invite stillness, imagination, and simply being. Baby Lotus is both a reconstruction of those formative environments and an offering of that sense of refuge to others.