Caroline Bartlett, Full Circle, 2016, stitched and hand-printed linen, silk and cotton, cotton thread, imprinted porcelain mounted on acrylic
40” X 46”
Image courtesy of Suzanne Lovell Inc.
Tom Grotta of BrownGrotta Arts is not only an expert in the field of fiber arts, but he is “THE” international expert on the topic. He is a resource beyond compare and his efforts on behalf of so many artists across the world of fiber art is incredible.
I had the opportunity to tour his world when he was in Chicago as an exhibitor for SOFA 2016. He shared story after story of the incredible talent he sees in fiber. Below are a few of my personal favorites.
Detail
Image courtesy of Browngrotta Arts
Browngrotta Arts presented Judy Mulford’s room-sized mixed media installation, Empty Chairs, features a central sculpture, “What now?” she said. “What now?…What now?…What now?…” surrounded by 80 individually designed chairs in frames. “My art honors and celebrates the family,” says the artist. “It is autobiographical and a scrapbook of my life. I worked for three years on my Empty Chairs series to celebrate my 80th birthday. The chairs also honor the loss of loved ones. They are memory chairs.
Mulford’s work is informed by her studies of the basket-making culture of Micronesia, particularly on the islands of Truk and Ulithi. She was a member of the studio team for Judy Chicago’s The Dinner Party in the 1970s.
Image courtesy of Browngrotta Arts
Norma Minkowitz at Browngrotta Arts
Images courtesy of Browngrotta Arts and their blog Art Text Style
….the framed triptych is “delicate and extraordinary”!
Image courtesy of Browngrotta Arts
The 3rd artist is a wonderful woman whom I first encountered at Long House with her colored column of fiber. She produces pieces that can be installed outside and we hope to place one at a residence we are working on in Naples!
Mariyo Yagi, A Cycle – Infinity, mixed media (steel, FPR, sisal, resin and polyurethehane), 37.5″ x 65″ x 35.5″, 2016
Image courtesy of Browngrotta Arts