Neekta Torabian is an artist based out of Ontario.

Description:

Before You Fly Off

Before You Fly Off Each 3D printed patch is crowdsourced from a New Media graduate, class of 2020 and some of its faculty. All the patterns are printed onto a mesh fabric and quilted together, forming a vest. The vest hugs and protects its carrier. Different colours are placed beside each other forming a community that is diverse and stable. The vest is a reflection of the New Media’s core strength; its community.

On January 8, 2020, a Ukrainian airliner crashed in Iran killing 176 people. One of them was 21-year old Zeynab Asadi-Lari returning from visiting her family in Iran. She was a science student at UTM and a huge advocate for mental health. Losing her made me value the communities that I am in and to love every human that passes through my life unconditionally. This vest is a proclamation - “I love you” - to every single human that enters my life.

With this pandemic, one thing we can all take from it is to love and cherish human connection. In this new year, we should try and repair the ripped seams in our relationships and look at what our relationships truly mean us.