BIO TITLE.. or not
ARTIST'S STATEMENT
My first beaten linen pieces were based on tapestry technique. The center was beaten and formed and the edges were a soft tapestry “frame”. This initial work was quite small. These fiber constructions produced a three-dimensional fabric structure. The weaving techniques used were wedge and eccentric weft weaves along with plain and tapestry weaves.
I developed a process that fixes the woven linen fabric into a hard and unyielding and permanent form. The completed linen weaving is soaked in a solution of water and glue, beaten to break up the twist of the spun linen tread and to smooth and flatten the surface structure, pressed while damp, and molded to fix the beaten fabric into a permanent form. This process changes the soft drape of fabric into a metal-like permanent structure.
In further explorations, I created a series of large beaten and painted squares mounted on wooden frames and affixed to the wall. I painted the pieces and made the edges of the square hard and crisp. I framed the squares with wood and made the wooden frame part of the piece. These evolved into woven “paintings”. I look upon my first phase as weavings that happen to be painted. Now I think of these images as paintings that happen to be woven.
My miniature braided linen structures represent landscape motifs: the repeated elements, subtle colors and textures found in nature. They are statements about places I am fond of, the woods and gently rolling hills of my native Michigan. More recently, my small braided pieces are a response to the beautiful places I have lived: New England, Northern California.
My most recent paper pieces contrast movement and change and are affected by imperceptible wind currents. These pieces, because of there loose instability, are in constant change and flux, with patterns and color contently shifting.