The intended instructions of simple classroom lessons are subverted through haphazard scribbles, erasure, blurring and obfuscation. In the process, the lessons of societal conformity embedded within them are revealed. The tone of the project shifts from sentiments of nostalgia, innocence and hope as they float through emotions of frustration, anger and shame.

Brightly colored composition notebooks vacillate between promise and loss as they resolutely command attention standing as charged objects of excitement and dread. Concepts of silencing and judgement are introduced through a dialogue between inscription and erasure. Methods of simple repetition act as an agent of resilience. Language is pushed to the edge of legibility to reflect upon current trends towards its manipulation, effectively transforming it into babble. Some lessons are set up for failure as there is no solution, no way out. Others offer a space of light-hearted joy.

As I witness the recent cultural shift towards the censorship of ideas, the misuse of language and the suppression of individual personhood, these lessons seem particularly pressing.