EVER WHITE HANDKERCHIEFS

54” x 22.5” x 45.5”

Made out of the remnants of an 1870 Klan robe made out of old flour sacks from Carthage, Arkansas.

I remember as a child every Saturday morning was ironing day. Women through our community would all make a hot pot of coffee in an old percolator coffee pot and pop up the ironing board to iron the laundry for the week. I always found it interesting that small hankies were ironed with as much time and detail as a pressed shirt and I was taught as a very young child how to iron and fold these hankies with precision skill. It's these little details in life that I notice are sometimes the hardest to change.

Hankies are harmless, but I wanted to show how a discriminatory mindset can become as normal as a daily routine. One that is passed down to younger generations with precision and skill as a normal tradition. When I saw the metal display case that stated "Ever White" on the front, it reminded me of the ironing ritual. It made me think of how long we have been fighting the concept of race superiority based on the color of skin or even represented in the color of a cloth worn in demeaning intimidation. The old, heavy flat iron represents an archaic mind set who's actions leave a dark stain of fear and ignorance ingrained in society. The cloth hankies made out of the remnants of the old klan robe represent the normality of everyday hatred and bigotry.