Gurjeet Singh’s Fabric Busts: Using Scrap Fabric to Reflect on Queer Grievances

Artist Gurjeet Singh creates soft busts out of fabric and yarn to reflect on his childhood trauma, during which he was bullied for being a queer child. 

Singh pours out his thoughts and emotions as he reflects on his childhood into each stitch, each cut and each knot he makes on the busts. Allowing himself to feel the emotions and heal from the trauma so that they no longer has to define his queer experience.

To create his pieces, Singh uses scrap fabric, yarn and found objects like beads and plastic toys, making use of discarded materials and giving them a longer life. This makes his pieces reflect the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals of Reduced Inequalities and Responsible Consumption and Production.

In an interview with Voices of Fashion, Singh shared that he prefers to use discarded material because of a personally assigned symbolic meaning. Growing up queer meant that most people left him feeling unseen, small and inconsequential, like literal trash and discarded waste. He thought it was appropriate to use objects that represent what he felt like to contextualize those experiences today.

Each piece Singh creates is a reflection of a specific moment or emotion from his childhood. His process is intuitive, allowing him to choose and select his forms and materials on the go. All while he is simultaneously feeling his emotions.

However, certain pieces, such as his Portrait of a Friend - Lakhi, are not reflections of his own emotions, but are instead those of his queer friends. Portrait of a Friend - Lakhi itself is Singh’s rumination on one of his friends, who is also queer. 

“He had to give up his aspirations of becoming a hair and makeup artist because his brother-in-law felt that the profession wasn’t meant for ‘normal’ men,” said Singh.

Here, his pieces become tools for shared grieving within the queer community. They hold space for all the things in life that they are held back from, due to society’s negative perception of queerness.

Find out more about these fabric busts and other pieces by Gurjeet Singh by checking their Instagram on @softgurjeet.