Illusions of Softness- ceramic installation reimagines lace doilies as symbols of resilience and cultural reclamation. Though introduced to Caribbean homes as markers of European refinement, Black women, including my mother—who brought a doily from St. Vincent and the Grenadines when she migrated to the U.S. in the 1960s—transformed these fragile objects into treasured symbols of status and care. In “The Illusion of Softness”, I mold and embed doily patterns collected from my family and Southern thrift shops into clay forms that appear crumpled yet beautiful. This work reflects how Black diasporans, much like these doilies, have the power to reshape and reclaim their futures from the remnants of the past.