Eliza Finck (University of Missouri, Columbia)
Did You See That Too?, 2021
tapestry, canvas, acrylic paint, crayon, paper mache (approx. 3ftx2ft)
My sculptural weavings are part of a larger body of work centering around my own experience with bipolar disorder. I use paper mache, a medium most of us leave behind at grade school science fairs, to create embellishments for my tapestry work. This work is about a place on the edge of my consciousness where real isn’t quite real and fiction isn’t quite fiction. I visit there from time to time, but it’s not somewhere I choose to go--- almost like a completely believable dream, one that I reference later as fact. I see things out of the corners of my eyes, until they are the center of my vision. Did I take my medicine today? There is someone walking parallel to me, but everytime I turn to look at them they’re gone. The sky lights up at night like a spotlight. The birds are targeting me, diving at me. The lines between real and fake get blurry. I count my edges over and over. When did I get so sharp?
Kate Fromm (Kansas City Art Institute)
1984, 2021
stretched silk (35x43)
This triptych is inspired by the colors from the summer of 1984. They were produced in hopes to evoke the atmosphere of that summer, the summer the artist's father was her same age at the time of creation. In these works the artist explores the duality a relationship holds. Specifically how a parental relationship develops from childhood to adulthood. Dyed strategically in four quadrants each panel has shifts in color and pattern within themselves as well as from one panel to the next. These changes evoke the subtle shifts that take place over the course of a relationship.
Carolina Gaillard (Virginia Commonwealth University)
Sad Plaid 1, 2021
Silk (24 x 24 x 1.5 ")
My Plaid Series has focused on focused on evoking emotion through the interplay of colors within restricted compositions. In my Sad Plaids, I've departed from my typical rainbow color palette, referencing more somber memories. I invite viewers to gaze at these textile "paintings" like windows and reflect on the scenes which the artwork brings to their mind.
Sally Garner (Georgia State University)
Altered Timelines, 2021
Double-pointed knitting needles, paper raffia (Variable, shown here at 16"x27"x14")
Because our memories are not guaranteed to last, I try to preserve moments that have meaning to me like one would capture a home movie and rewatch it over the years. And although they are replayed often, the memories are still not far from changing at any moment. Our minds have a way of manipulating our sense of time and the accuracy of the events that occurred are debatable. In an attempt to conjure scenes from another time and place, I create my work using various textile or fiber techniques because they are often the most repetitious and tedious movements, turning my process into a meditative journey. In the piece Altered Timelines, I am using the traditional basketry technique of twining to join a multitude of untethered spokes made from double pointed knitting needles. The resulting pathway pivots and spirals out into a new form of non-traditional basketry.
Madeline Gotshall (Kutztown University of Pennsylvania)
Limen, 2021
Lycra, Polyester Fiber Fill, Wood (36"x36"x5")
"Limen" encapsulates a memory from a time of great uncertainty and transition. The reflective properties of the lycra fabric combined with softness recreate the comfort of looking up at the night sky.
Camille Guellec (College for Creative Studies)
Whimsical, 2021
Digitally Manipulated Gouache Paint (40"x31")
My work revolves around the concept of Surrealism, with a main focus on dreams and their symbolism. I do this by implementing the representation of the conscious vs. subconscious within my work. My dream research is very “hands-on”; in the sense that I often lucid dream and keep a dream journal. I also find inspiration via automatism, which is a technique adopted by Surrealist authors and artists which “denotes the separation between a person’s behavior and his or her consciousness of it.” This is done by letting my art resort to chance and dreams in order to guide the production.
Allison Hellman (Iowa State University)
Iowa Wildflowers, 2020
embroidery floss, muslin (40"x33.5")
This series details my findings of Iowa wildflowers during my hikes in the Ames, Iowa area near Iowa State University's campus. In the months of August through October, Iowa has an abundance of blooming flowers and it only takes getting outside to find them. This project allowed me to explore new trails, and reflect on the beauty around me during a difficult time in the world. The details are the most important aspect of my Iowa Wildflowers Series. The flowers are depicted with sketch-like stitches and adorned with a gilded shape reflecting the form and movement of the plant. This series includes Great Blue Lobelia, Pale Gentian, Evening Primrose, Common Jewelweed, Sweet Black-Eyed Susan, and Chicory.
Hannah Hill (Thomas Jefferson University)
Dissimilitude, 2021
Cotton, Polyester and metal yarns (12" x 18" x ..4")
This hand-knit textile demonstrates dimensionality in knit structure as well as yarn choice to create an irregular and unexpected surface. The ends of yarn were cut and tied back on at random while knitting which gives it transparency in some areas, and soft density in others. A combination of held stitches with miss stitches was used in irregular patterns for the knit structure.
Britnee Holley (Tennessee Tech University)
Sprouting Bud, 2020-21
Bamboo and cotton yarn / silk (180"x25")
This is an image of the first stage weaving that will be included as part of my senior thesis exhibition, ""Pardon Me Daylily."" Pardon Me Daylily is an installation of fiber art that includes woven materials and dyed silk. Each piece in the exhibition represents one of the three major stages of life of the Daylily: the sprouting bud, the full bloom, and the dying flower. Each textile was handwoven on an 8-harness floor loom. The warps and wefts were hand-dyed and painted, helping portray the colors and patterns of the Daylily. The Sprouting Bud is inspired by the bud that has not bloomed yet. The color scheme and gradients of the yellows and greens were drawn from this very early stage of growth. The woven patterns were inspired by the microscopic views of the cellular structure of the bud.
Li-Chia Hsiao (Parsons School of Design)
I Want To Be A Brave Rat, 2021
Yarn, Cotton, Beads, Wire (53x33x19)
With this new series of textile work “I Want To Be A Brave Rat”, I explore combining multiple textile techniques such as knitting, tufting, and embroidery to tell stories that raise awareness about the notion of women’s work in Taiwanese society. As a twenty-five year old Taiwanese woman, I have been inspired by a traditional story that also gives its title to my project. In Taiwanese society it is commonly considered that life requires marriage to be complete, and is therefore empty for a woman who never has children. Bringing the domestic ideas into my textile work to tell the issue of gender inequality that happened around my life. I always believe if my work can bring joy and give a little influence in the society, I will be happy!
Ruth Kaneko (University of Hawaii at Manoa)
Service Connected, 2021
Army Uniforms (8x10")
My work with fibers and papermaking allow me to tell my autobiographical stories using materials from my life experiences. In this body of work, I transformed my U.S. Army uniforms into 100 pieces of paper through a process of deconstruction, reconstruction, and reclaiming. This has been called combat paper by the Combat Paper Project, a larger community project with other veterans. As I performed the papermaking, I transformed myself; my pain, sacrifice, and service. Through repetition, rhythm, and working with the material for prolonged periods, I became mindful of the role of art in creating personal resilience in the face of diverging levels of trauma that otherwise serve to fracture one’s identity and belonging. I have discovered that love and service are connected in complex ways.
Kate Kosek (Georgia State University)
Penelope Brancusi, 2021
cotton & acrylic yarn, steel, paracord, plastic canvas, 3D printed PLA (96" x 13" x 11")
"I create fiber sculptures that playfully scrutinize and critique gender roles, women's labor, and embodied femininity. Bright colors and symbols exuberantly obfuscate the harmful realities of expectations surrounding womanhood and fertility. Remixing materials sourced from craft store shopping sprees together with textile techniques, digital print technology, and welded metal armatures, I upend gendered hierarchies inherent within art, craft, and the economy. This particular piece was inspired by Penelope's endless shroud in ""The Odyssey"" and Brancusi's sculpture ""Endless Column."""
Nicole Kuzma
Crazy Fingers, 2020-2021
Hand spun/dyed yarn, hand dyed monofilament, hand painted cotton, denim, hand dyed canvas, copper wire, acrylic yarn, hand dyed rattan, plastic bags, repurposed (unusable) clothing, reflective tape, gaffer tape, PVC, sand (180" L x 28" W x 65" H)
This woven artifact engages with the history of mid-20th century American counterculture and my positionality as Dead Head. By enacting psychedelia through process this piece incites a psychedelic response. The work is hand painted with bold acid colors and shares moments of technical tightness alongside disrupted surfaces to generate a whimsical and "trippy" sculpture for contemplative enjoyment.
Jude Mertens (Moore College of Art & Design)
Get Well Soon, 2021
embroidery floss, found/recycled fabrics, beads, embroidery hoop, and wood frame (12 x12 x12)
Get Well Soon is a piece from my thesis. It is a story about two figures going for a walk and at one point they come across a dead deer symbolic of trauma, and loss of innocence. The balloon, though humorous, is also a cruel reminder that promising things will get better doesn't make it so. The piece is also about realizing your impact on the environment, as a human in the collective, is not a good one and coming to terms with it.
Jacquelyn Moore (Jacquelyn Moore)
Dark Damask, 2020
Gouache and Photoshop (27" x 32.5")
This design was based on the character, Dr. Kreizler, from the crime novel The Alienist.
Molly Morningglory (Clemson University)
Dirt Drawing, 2020
cotton muslin, found clay, in situ charcoal, lake (fabric document 66"x72" triptych 12"x30")
This triptych documents the action of dyeing a large muslin sheet with natural material in situ. Using cotton references the agricultural history of Clemson University's Experimental Forest at Issaqueena Lake, land which was stolen from Cherokee people and subsequently worked by enslaved Indigenous and African peoples. Deep orange terracotta clay from a tree fell creates the peachy background color. Black and gray markings were made by wrapping the sheet around a standing burned tree and pressing my body against it; embracing the trunk with my own trunk while caressing and massaging with my hands. The piece was then slowly rinsed in the cool water of the lake, allowing the stains to set and the excess dye goods to wash away.
Danielle O'Malley (University of Massachusetts)
Caged, 2021
Woven Earthenware, Adobe Paper Clay, Rust Dye, Coffee Dye, Sodium Silicate ((hxwxd) 72" x 30" x 30")
My work is rooted in an environmental consciousness that derives from my concern for the Earth's rapidly declining health, and I use it to highlight the misuse and abuse that we inflict on the natural world. I make hand built, monumental sculptures using strong formal devices, gestural installation placement, sensual form, and conscious material usage to create work that is symbolically charged. My forms are influenced by domestic and industrial objects that I experience in my daily life that are indicative of eco-friendly tools and warning symbols. I marry my earthen objects with industrial surplus that is recontextualized through laborious textile processes, and the contrasting media charges my work with tension and serves as a metaphor for the complex relationship that humanity has with the natural world. I hope that my passion for making, my love for the earth, and my delight in observing the world will encourage people to join me in reconsidering our daily routines.
Sarah Palmer (NC State University)
Revolveress (collection), 2020
Mixed material, velvet, tulle and jacquards (mixed)
Revolveress is a clothing line based on the concept of modernizing Victorian fashion, with recurring themes of statement sleeves, illusion lines and the luxury fabrics. This line is influenced by Alexander McQueen, Vivienne Westwood, and Rodarte, with styles of old High Fashion with a new, modern elegance. Intended for a diverse market, this line blends traditional menswear cuts with Feminine flair that is meant to be flattering to a number of shapes and personalities.
Nhan Phan (Berea College)
Echo in the Night, 2021
Cotton and rayon embroidery floss on black cotton fabric (19"x20")
As a child of diaspora, it is difficult for me to define home. I don't fit in the U.S. because its culture is different from the one in my home, nor was I completely raised with Vietnamese cultural values. Sometimes, I felt like a pappus-clad, floating, and lost in the wind between two cultures. As a 1.5-generation Vietnamese-American, the exploration of my identity and culture has always played an important role in my art. Mentally, I am living between two cultures, yet I often feel I cannot lay claim to either. Living in the United States, I sometimes feel disconnected from my Vietnamese culture, and when I return to Vietnam, I witness the degradation of the traditional and cultural appreciation I hold to be important. In my work, I aim to uphold what is being lost with change in Vietnam and I look to preserve the intangible cultural heritages, and the textile cultural heritages that lay the foundation of Vietnamese cultural identity.
Nadeeshani Ratnayaka (Kansas State University)
Floral Prints, 2021
Natural fabrics (Cotton, Bamboo, Silk, Silk Noil) (10" x 7")
Exploration of design possibilities and techniques of eco-printing methods of bundle dyeing and flower pounding onto fabric to produce botanical prints and use of natural dyes (madder root and indigo) to create surface patterns as effective, and sustainable alternatives to synthetic dyeing and printing.
Jack Rose (University of Georgia)
over/under/over, 2021
Acorn, walnut, and indigo on linen (30"x26.5")
Expanding on the nuance of woven structures, this work explores the intricacies of interlaced threads. The structure represented here is an impossible one — the “threads” dance in and out of play, creating a more open and dynamic web. My work is without a doubt influenced by generations of craftspeople working in Appalachia, and my practice is a reflection of that. Acorns, walnuts, and other native plants gathered from trails are used as my primary sources of color while craft itself is the subject of much of my work.
Lauryn Tipper (Massey University)
Tohorā & Kauri, 2020
Print Paste on Cotton Linen (314"x 51")
For this surface design I looked into how scientific testing can potentially restrict the use of Mātauranga māori (Knowledge of a Māori worldview). Specifically in the case of Kauri Dieback - a disease caused by a soil born pathogen called PTA. It kills Kauri trees of all ages and there is currently no cure. However, alternative solutions are embedded in the Māori cosmological narrative surrounding the relationship between Kauri and Tohorā (Whales). This has influenced the testing of whale bi-product as a protectant for the Kauri against PTA. I wanted this design to tautoko (support) tangata whenua (people of this land) and the grass-root organisations who are tackling issues like this through alternative solutions.
Kevin Tracy (UC Berkeley Extension)
Quilt 1, 2020
Polypropylene woven mesh, spray paint, wax thread (48" x 48")
Affected by the strong graphic style of graffiti art on spray-painted mesh screens, my current work appropriates and up-cycles the synthetic fabric into quilts and tea bowls. These works push beyond the boundaries separating painting and sculpture as well as blur and discourage assignment to historically determined or engendered roles of craft.
Emmie Troyer (Kent State University)
Sonograms, 2021
Wool, plaster, and polyurethane. (Six weavings measuring 8"x8".)
Sonograms is a series of six soft sculptures that contain patterns suggesting growth, and cycles. By overlapping fiber processes the surfaces mimic body-like textures. Felted wool appears like raised skin, and embedded objects suggest soars or cysts which personifies the form. Moving between a mutualistic, and parasitic dynamic, at once the objects appear to be growing from within the textile while at the same time they push at the integrity of the structure. These effects are rooted in my conception of the bond between mother and child. In Sonograms the body of a maternal figure is symbolized by the cloth, and the imposing objects represent her burden. Paired with visual cues, the language used to describe textiles also enforces this narrative. Supple and soft, are words that could not only be used to describe a textile but also a mother.
Caleb Wells (Ferris State University)
Bad Touch, 2021
Repurposed curtains, blankets, and matching table set (20x20x2)
This look is apart of my newest collection “BAD TOUCH” this collection discusses aspects of sexual assault, self harm, mental illness, and overall growth as an individual. “It’s not only the wonderful aspects of our lives that make us who we are. The low points influence us just as much. They remind us that we aren’t invincible, we’re human. Just as mush as we rely on the positive things in life to keep us moving forward, we can always learn from the challenging, embarrassing, and traumatic experiences as well. They have the power to hinder us immobilized, yet through work and growth we have the ability to turn them into motivation that keeps us pushing, moving, and fighting for what we want out of life. This journey of reflection and growth is what “BAD TOUCH” represents”. -Caleb Ryan Wells @crw_1999 Model: @raquelirisrivera Photography: @jeswardantonio @alfalfagalll
Eli West (Pacific Northwest College of Art)
Among the Shrubbery, 2021
wool (5'x4'x1")
Among the Shrubbery offers a colorful and joyful ecosystem that reimagines online cruising culture in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Artist Eli West invites the viewer into an exciting landscape referencing benign moments, fever dreams, and a raw desire for human touch in a time of social distancing. West gives an entryway into an often invisible underground,bursting with life and multilayered complex relationships. Prodding body parts and vintage Nokia cell phones are all characters in this ambiguously sweet, dark and hedonistic world. His desire to work in felt is born from a space of agitation and pressure, the same elements required to transform raw fiber into felt. Held in congruence with the artist’s playful impulsiveness, these material qualities become emblematic of his experience as a contemporary queer person which requires an equivalent amount of agitation, pressure, transformation and playfulness as a matter of survival.
Katherine Wiedemann (Fine Arts Center)
Junk Drawer, 2020
cotton fabric, screen printing ink, embroidery floss, yarn, tulle, acrylic paint, marker (36" x 24")
Junk Drawer is an ode to the crinkled, worn-out coupons and flyers stuffed into the bottom of purses, pockets, and eventually the junk drawer. Most of these items are tucked away with the idea that they will be useful one day but are ultimately forgotten. I used images from catalogs and texts from magazines to fill the composition. There are layers of monotype prints, paint, dyed fabric, crochet netting, and embroidery with yarn. There are multiple figures included in the piece that can be seen morphing into one other, creating a disproportionate and uneasy appearance.
Gigi Woolery (Portland State University)
Bloat, 2021
discarded quilt scraps, thread (6"x11")
This textile work is made from part of a discarded and torn quilt. Materials like these are heavy with memory as well as aesthetic value for me. They document decay, and nostalgia for comfort items. I believe textiles in this state recall a demoralized body. It decays, thins, and is reinforced with stitching like scar tissue. Making this textile object allows me to create at a time of isolation and scarcity. Mending and deconstructing over and again is a way for me to mend the pain of separation, diaspora, and the traumas held in my body.
Emily Yurkevicz (Indiana University, Bloomington)
re·collections noun | re·gen·er·ate adjective, 2020
plaster, gold leaf, (indigo dyed cotton, madder dyed cotton, iron mordant, thread, cotton batting) | oak, soot, Indiana Switchgrass, time (120" x 120" x 56" installation)
re·collections noun plaster, gold leaf, (indigo dyed cotton, madder dyed cotton, iron mordant, thread, cotton batting) re·collections, recall, repress. re-press. Press into, leave traces. Feminine labor weaves time into cloth and binds cloth into quilt. The bodily object, family heirloom; leaves its mark in the construction of a secular spirituality. The quilt binds the family. A lingering connection to that which is absent. A moment in time frozen into infinite silence. re·gen·er·ate adjective oak, soot, grass, time re·gen·er·ate; stand watch and return to the Earth. Contemplate rebirth, listen to the echo of your being as it casts memories through reaches your body will never inhabit. Repeat.
Through my art, I engage in world-making through the process of play and material-errantry. My form of world-making uses craft traditions as a flexible constraint; I collaborate with materials and colors to achieve a coherence and consistency finely attuned to my intuitive judgment. I look for openings in the making process where I can ply confident imperfections and deviations, subverting fixed expectations of the tradition or technique at hand. I often use bright colors and repeating patterns as a way of injecting each project with evidence of the exuberant aliveness I feel when making art. My practice seeks to alleviate daily doldrums and spiritless ways of living – instead, transforming objects and spaces into paratelic experiences. I gift these works to the viewer as an optimistic nudge towards joy, connection and a playful awareness of how the larger world could be.
