Through 2020
My Collages in mixed media led me to manipulating a yard of burlap and the realization that I needed a warp, a structure to hold fibers in place, a field of taut threads to work into.
So, I took a weaving workshop at a local craft center and learned how to warp a loom. The drum-tight grid of fiber running in one direction provided a neutral background for me to use as a canvas. I painted and dyed it, wove into it, twisted other material onto it, gathered it, pinched it, shred it, cut it away, and stitched over it.
I’ve chosen to stretch these and incorporate the mat/background into the final piece. Each piece has yielded new ideas and techniques and future work may explore sculpture, larger pieces, and digital printing.
Red Now
Red Now became the bridge between the Collages and Fine Art. It’s the last in the Collage series, slightly larger than the others, and working with the swatches of monochromatic clothing led me to experimenting with a yard of burlap that took me to an experimental fiber series.
Looking In, Looking Out, 30” x 30”. Linen, cotton, hand painted paper, wire.
Looking In, Looking Out - detail
Pocket Weave
This piece is barely contained in the ten-inch square frame. It was woven with a grey linen warp and includes hand painted paper, wire, cotton, linen, and silk thread.
Darkening, 32” x 32”. Linen, cotton, silk, hand painted paper, wire.
Each square got darker and denser as I worked my way through this piece. The edges weren’t smooth and I mended them with wire. The top fringe needed tacking down and I did it stitch by stitch, each one individually knotted. My father also passed away just as I finished it. I was grieving while I worked.
Darkening, detail
88 Dashes, 88 Knots, 32” x 34”. Linen, cotton, silk, hand painted paper, wire.
88 Dashes, 88 Knots -detail
Nine Ovals, 20” x 20” Linen, silk, flax, paper, wire.
Nine Ovals is part of a series exploring Shelter and Home. Each oval was a different technique and there was some serious ripping out along the way. 2020 brought us quarantine. Nine Ovals is the safest place to shelter in place.
Off the Loom, 20" x 15" x 6", Linen, cotton, paper, wire, paint.
Passing Over, 42" x 29". Digital photography on linen, paper, silk.
Passing Over came from a desire to work larger, explore digital printing on fabric, and the need to compose in portable pieces. I am always pulled along by the energy and momentum of city streets, yet drawn to slow down and stop and notice small bits of paper and nature that litter my way. Silk stitching on digital printing creates a similar tension: small, soft, and meditative on a larger, colder mechanical surface.
Passing Over, detail
Shelter 20, 24” x 12” x 8”, Cotton fiber, paper, wire.
Shelter 20 is part of a series exploring Shelter and Home. It’s woven and then cut off the loom and formed in the air, without scaffolding, much like brambles and dormant branches I pass on early spring hikes.
Urban Hike, 20" x 20". Digital photography on linen, paper, silk.
Urban Hike zigs and zags like all city walking. Sky rendered geometric when caught between buildings, yellow street markings generally ignored, Central Park always in our mind's eye, and comfortable shoes.
Urban Hike, detail
Checked Off, 12" x 12" Cotton, wire, paper, paint.
Checked Off is what we’re asked to do all our lives. Check off the box: age, gender, ethnicity, race; the world rushes to categorize us. Sometimes, our job as artists, is to question that.
This Happened, 50” x 50” Rug warp, wire, paper, paint, shellac.
This Happened was going to be woven sheets to form into a sculptural shelter but, when I sewed two sheets together and created the roll in the center, I knew it was complete as is. Sometimes the process leads the concept and you have to be open to change.
SOLD. Very proud that this piece was shown at The Woodstock Art and Artists Museum in 2019.