East of Eden

Artist Statement

On a busy Prague thoroughfare, a homeless man carries on his daily struggle for life. Amidst crowds of tourists this fragile man sits ignored and invisible, the epitome of misfortune and exclusion.

Aran’s focus is on figurative stitched textile images. She has stories to tell. Having worked in nursing and social care, Aran saw the impacts of homelessness, poverty and social deprivation Her textile portraits now bear witness to those experiences, walking the delicate line between pain and hope. Her images set out to command the viewer’s attention and to communicate emotion to them, drawing them into the situation depicted and eliciting a response based on their own past experience.