Pictures

Commentary piece for Exhibition

Explanation of the motivation for the exhibition

Scale of Repulsion I

Vintage bakelite buttons, thread and tape measure on vintage French bed linen

50 x 50 cm

Photographs of buttons were sent to a button phobic in order to examine which buttons she found most repellent. She cut up the photographs rearranged them in an order of repulsion and posted them back to me in the new order.

One in seventy five thousand of us

Vintage silk map, thread, name tapes and vintage French glass buttons on vintage bed linen

50 x 50 cm

I began to research button phobics and found hundreds online- posting empathetic comments to each other, delighted that they had found fellow sufferers. On one it was estimated that 1:75,000 of us is a button phobic.

Scale of Repulsion III

Vintage bakelite buttons, thread and tape measure on vintage French bed linen

50 x 50 cm

It became clear that the plainer the button the more repellent. She felt less disgust when faced with those that were more decorative.

Disgust/ Fear Hierarchy

Vintage buttons, thread, remnant of child's shirt and tape measure on vintage French bed linen

50 x 50 cm

I found only one piece of clinical research which dealt with button phobia and its treatment:

Case Study: Disgust and a Specific Phobia of Buttons

Lissette M Saavedr MS abd Wendy K Silverman PhD

Journ. Am. Child and Adoles. Psychiatry Nov 2002

This study deals with the treatment of a 9 year old boy with a phobia of buttons. He developed his phobia after an incident while taking part in an art project involving buttons when he was 5. The button bowl on his teacher’s desk slipped as he reached into it and the buttons fell over him. Four years later the progressive distress he felt around buttons meant he was unable to dress himself and found it difficult to concentrate at school. The study interestingly differentiates between the reactions of disgust and fear in childhood phobias and charts an exposure based therapy which finally cures him of his phobia.

This picture is a direct representation of his initial distress at a range of buttons.

Scale of Repulsion III

Vintage bakelite buttons, thread and tape measure on vintage French bed linen

50 x 50 cm

Dirt played a large part, four-holed buttons could harbour the most.

Fear of Loose Buttons

Silk screen print, silk ribbon, silk organza and vintage buttons on vintage red velvet

50 x 50 cm

It seems from online postings that buttons can be equally repellent when attached to garments as when loose.

Fear of Loose Buttons 3

Silk screen print, silk ribbon, silk organza and vintage buttons on vintage red velvet

50 x 50 cm

Collections of buttons can trigger unpleasant reactions from feelings of nausea to actual vomiting.

Fear of Loose Buttons 2

Silk screen print, silk ribbon, silk organza and vintage buttons on vintage red velvet

50 x 50 cm

The smell and touch and sound of them is as distasteful as the sight of them.

Button Phobia title piece

Vintage French glass buttons on card with thread on vintage bed linen

50 x 50 cm

Before being made into a picture, the complete card with all its buttons was photographed and sent to a button phobic. Her response to the photograph was written down and Button Army is my response to hers.

Fear of shirt buttons

Silk shirt remnant, linen, thread and shirt buttons on vintage bed linen

50 x 50 cm

A comment posted online by a sufferer. It became clear that button phobia is no respecter of gender or age and sufferers seem to come from all sections of society.

Fear of Coat Buttons

Vintage Vogue pattern, wool, buttons and thread on vintage bed linen

50 x 50cm

A comment posted online by a sufferer - a large number found that their phobia had developed in childhood although they had no recollection of what started it.

The Not So Bad

Vintage velvet, silk and glass buttons, thread on vintage bed linen

50 x 50 cm

Towards the end of the process I sent her a photograph of plastic and glass buttons via her mobile phone (I warned her they were coming) . She said she didn't find them too disgusting. I wondered whether the process had somehow helped her to address her phobia or whether the transparent nature of the material meant they were less 'present' and so less upsetting. She printed out the picture and sent it back with notes as they appear here.

Button Army

Silk, vintage French glass buttons and thread on vintage bed linen

50 x 50 cm

One of a series of pictures responding to the button phobic's specific comments about photographs of buttons she had been sent. Here she is responding to a photograph of the card of buttons seen in Button Phobia

Different Types on Buttons

silk screen print, vintage buttons, thread on vintage bed linen

20 x 20 cm

one of a triptych

I can't even say the word

silk screen print, vintage buttons, thread on vintage bed linen

20 x 20 cm

one of a triptych

I will not touch it

silk screen print, vintage buttons, thread on vintage bed linen

20 x 20 cm

one of a triptych

button phobia catlogue.jpg

Catlogue on sale with the show (limited edition- all sold)