Jean Bodies 2010 - present
Prince’s soft sculpture series Jean Bodies is constructed from donated, used jeans that are cut apart and meticulously hand-worked into new forms. This material choice speaks to accessibility, inclusion, and environmental stewardship. Jeans—one of the most common garments across cultures and communities—carry the traces of those who wore them, making each sculpture a record of collective presence and shared use. Through donation, community members become collaborators, extending the work beyond the studio and into lived relationship.
The Jean Bodies suggest multiple ways people come together, both physically and emotionally. Their forms echo the scale of the human body while also referencing shapes found in nature. Titles draw from Prince’s lived experience, reading, and intimate emotional states, further embedding personal and collective narratives within each work.
Jean donors to date: Adrienne Domingus, Alex Kelly, Amy Pruitt, Annie Bruce, Anya Nabiev, Bill Janecke, Bouma Family, Buy Nothing Alki/Admiral (West Seattle), Cathy McClure, Chloe Chudina, Dana Rambo, Debra Broz, Deborah Chen Van Patten, Desiree Serr, Elizabeth Batchelder, Emily Wenner, Etta Will, Henry Baron, J. Gordon, Jakealyn Turner, James and Kay Janecke, JamesB Notkin, Jeana Frazier, Jite Agbro, Kathleen Capels, Kelly Crow, Kenski Okobayashi, Kevin McCullough, LeeAnne Beres, Lele Barnett, Lisa and Matt Jousma, Lisa and Micah Averiett, Loni Gieseking Slytebo, Lori MacDonald, Louise McDowell, Lydia Peterson, Lynda Lopez, Mark Lenssen, Matty Moore, Megan Prince, Nichelle Keatley, Nichole Halsey, Nyla Bitterman / Cherry Consignment, Olya Bolton, Pamela Rogers, Panida Vilaythong / FJ Consignment, Paul Evans, Peter Melvin, Prairie Underground, Rhea Herrell, Richard Janecke, Roxanne Heckman Meyer, Sergey Chudin, Sharon Mead, Sheri Ray, Sherrel Rhys, Sonia Jones, Susan Singleton, Terri Griffith, Theo Prince, TJ Janecke, Todd Bullock, William Leaman
*Anonymous donations were also made, some jeans were found, while others were purchased from Donation Centers and Thrift Stores to keep this project moving along. This list is kept as current as possible.