Working in fiber arts feels like a natural next step of exploration for me. I have always been interested in fibers and fabrics. My grandmother was a dress maker and growing up I spent so much time watching her work and visiting fabric stores to pick up new goods. I would wander the stores touching everything in site and she would patiently tell me the story of the fibers in each piece she chose. On long days in summer she would have me work through simple sewing projects using her scraps. I would make pillow covers and small bags first sewing by hand, then learning to use a machine. In my early 20’s I had success working for four years as a textile designer but disliked the competitive atmosphere of business life. I always held onto my love for fibers and fabrics, working on small personal projects. Lately I have been exploring different fiber art techniques and how I can work them through my artistic practice. Wool felting, appliqué and embroidery have been a good way for me to work through a painterly process of incorporating fibers into my first obsession, landscape painting. When I started visiting, then researching ancient stone circles around the world, and creating images of them using fiber art and mixed media, adding weaving seemed like the next step. It is the age-old wisdom of weaving that connects all of these fiber art works to the ancient sites depicted in the landscape images. Creating them in spiraling circular forms echoes the shapes and designs found in these sacred stone circles throughout the world.
"Solar Alignment Portal, Newgrange from above" captures the powerful, vivid memory of my first visit to this incredible place. The landscape, patterns and map of the place hold such importance and are reimagined in this work. Using a combination of watercolor washes to evoke the ethereal quality of light and atmosphere, I layered felt and woven fibers to represent the raw, enduring structure of the megalithic monument itself. Using vivid and vibrant colors to surround the work is an attempt to convey the feeling of celestial celebration that the location holds.
In “Rollright Stones and Sunset Auras” the word vivid perfectly describes the emotional charge of that unique moment when ancient human ingenuity converges with raw power of the sun. Using watercolor paint, felting and weaving together to builds a language that is as multifaceted as the location itself. The colors of the place and the sunset combined were stunning to behold. The vibrant golden and orange hues in the sky contrast sharply with the deep purple darkness of the coming night. I used earthy tones in the felted landscape, creating a strong sensation of energy and a bridge across millennia.
In “Storm clouds looming over Drombeg, was created first as a landscape image in watercolor, but the tactile nature of the felt and weaving, adds a profound, physical depth to this powerful and deeply personal historical memory, celebrating both the ancient builders' engineering and the enduring power of natural materials. The map of the location created in paint, appliqué and embroidery surrounding the landscape image is there to draw attention to the many circular and spiraling designs found at the stone circle. This piece is my testament to the site's enduring power and the strength of shared human history.
"Solar Alignment Portal, Newgrange from above" captures the powerful, vivid memory of my first visit to this incredible place. The landscape, patterns and map of the place hold such importance and are reimagined in this work. Using a combination of watercolor washes to evoke the ethereal quality of light and atmosphere, I layered felt and woven fibers to represent the raw, enduring structure of the megalithic monument itself. Using vivid and vibrant colors to surround the work is an attempt to convey the feeling of celestial celebration that the location holds.
In “Rollright Stones and Sunset Auras” the word vivid perfectly describes the emotional charge of that unique moment when ancient human ingenuity converges with raw power of the sun. Using watercolor paint, felting and weaving together to builds a language that is as multifaceted as the location itself. The colors of the place and the sunset combined were stunning to behold. The vibrant golden and orange hues in the sky contrast sharply with the deep purple darkness of the coming night. I used earthy tones in the felted landscape, creating a strong sensation of energy and a bridge across millennia.
In “Storm clouds looming over Drombeg, was created first as a landscape image in watercolor, but the tactile nature of the felt and weaving, adds a profound, physical depth to this powerful and deeply personal historical memory, celebrating both the ancient builders' engineering and the enduring power of natural materials. The map of the location created in paint, appliqué and embroidery surrounding the landscape image is there to draw attention to the many circular and spiraling designs found at the stone circle. This piece is my testament to the site's enduring power and the strength of shared human history.