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About the Artist
My attraction to knitting is physical. I am drawn to the tactile nature of the yarn and the rhythm of the needles. The process is calming, almost like a retreat. Which is a good thing, since my mind is usually whirling with ideas.
I am committed to making fiber artwork with my hands. I draw inspiration from the colors and textures of fibers – from smooth shiny silk and Tencel to curly, slippery mohair; from fluffy Shetland wool to crimpy, squishy Merino. Whether white as freshly fallen snow, brown as the earth, or brightly colored like a perennial garden in July, the colors of the fibers stimulate my imagination, sparking new ideas. As I work with the raw fiber, dyeing it, blending it, and spinning it into yarn, there is a give and take between my ideas and the materials, both influencing the final work.
Designing and spinning my own yarn gives me complete control over my palette. It also takes a long time. I spend hours carding or combing the fibers, some of which I may have dyed myself, to make fluffy balls of roving. Then I spend quiet days spinning the yarn on my Majacraft double-treadle spinning wheel. Only then do I start to knit.
Knitting sculptures, as opposed to wearables, gives me broad flexibility to comment on the world. However, I do not want to separate myself entirely from knitting’s original utility of making clothing. That is why many of my works are based on pieces of clothing, frequently referencing a traditional style, such as a Shetland vest or a Latvian mitten. The allusion to garments is also my way of including people in my art work. I use hands to represent human beings, suggesting the type of person by the style of the glove or mitten. A colorful mitten might be an energetic child; an elegant lace glove would be a sophisticated lady.
The subjects of my work come from other aspects of my life, world events, political commentary, or observations as I travel. I have served on a variety of boards and committees in my community. My frustration with group dynamics and my admiration for positive leaders has become the subject of some of my work. My desire to influence people to take action on social and environmental issues leads me to push people to notice and reflect on their surroundings and then to act. Pushing people to look beyond the obvious is important. Uncritical acceptance of biases disturbs me.
I record my sculpture inspirations in notebooks, coming back to them later to sketch and plan three-dimensional pieces. Sometimes the starting point is an idea; sometimes it is a shape or texture. Either way, I look for connections to tie together yarns, colors, stitch textures, and knitted shapes into a cohesive whole. Usually, the process of knitting calms my own thoughts and frees my mind to look ahead and take a fresh approach to the problems we all face.
My work has been exhibited in several galleries in Vermont where I make my home. I was part of In the Zone, a show of 11 regional artists chosen from among 400 applicants, at the Brattleboro Museum and Art Center (Nov. 2005-Feb. 2006). On the national scene, two of my works were chosen for exhibit at Convergence '06, a biennial conference of fiber artists held that year in Grand Rapids, Michigan. One piece, Respectable Clothing, won an honorable mention at the show. My piece Narrow Vision was selected for a Juror's Choice Award at the Maryland Federation of Art in 2007. I have been recognized as a Juried Artist by the Vermont Arts Council, which maintains a wonderful directory at www.vermontartscouncil.org.
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