Gordina Journal
Star and Water
A Motif on the Upper Back
A cuneiform-inspired composition embroidered on the upper back of a Marble Grey cotton T-shirt.
Star and Water brings cuneiform-inspired marks together in one vertical composition on the upper back. Dark thread stands against Marble Grey cotton, leaving the spaces between the marks visible.
The name is Gordina’s interpretation, not a verified translation of an ancient inscription. A Babylonian letter in The Metropolitan Museum of Art offers historical context for writing on clay; it is not the documented source of this embroidery.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art — Cuneiform tablet: private letter
The cotton becomes the ground for the composition. Where a stylus makes impressions in clay, embroidery builds a textured line above the fabric. Looking closely reveals the thread; from farther away, the arrangement reads as one detail.
The embroidery today
Embroidered in the Gordina studio in the Netherlands.
Cuneiform-inspired embroidery arranged vertically on the upper back of the Marble Grey T-shirt.
