Artist Statement
I use cloth and dye to explore the ways that all life is interconnected. Color plays a big part in what I make and I like experimenting with all the ways I can put color into fabric. I create a personal spiritual practice by using repetition in the act of making and in the patterns I produce.
When I approach each piece, I begin with a white, undyed piece of cotton or silk cloth. I intuitively fold and clamp the cloth then add or remove dye. Repeating this process over and over, I am able to build successive layers and pattern. The dye saturates the fabric with color and pattern. Unlike painting, where the paint sits on top of the surface of the canvas, dye becomes part of the fabric, imbuing it with the energy of each color. This allows me to breathe life into the cloth.
This process of creating sets a rhythm of active and passive making. Repeatedly folding, clamping, and dyeing is an act of devotion and discovery.
I think about how connected all life forms are and how all life originates from tiny parts that band together to form patterns. I am inspired by the shapes and arrangements found in things like the flow of water, electrical energy currents and cells.
I love creating with dye and fabric because of the hands-on involvement and the labor-intensive techniques that slow the process of creation, forcing me to be both an active creator and observer simultaneously. I believe that each piece carries the thoughts and energy I experience while creating it. The process of making, and the end result, become a meditation.
I use cloth and dye to explore the ways that all life is interconnected. Color plays a big part in what I make and I like experimenting with all the ways I can put color into fabric. I create a personal spiritual practice by using repetition in the act of making and in the patterns I produce.
When I approach each piece, I begin with a white, undyed piece of cotton or silk cloth. I intuitively fold and clamp the cloth then add or remove dye. Repeating this process over and over, I am able to build successive layers and pattern. The dye saturates the fabric with color and pattern. Unlike painting, where the paint sits on top of the surface of the canvas, dye becomes part of the fabric, imbuing it with the energy of each color. This allows me to breathe life into the cloth.
This process of creating sets a rhythm of active and passive making. Repeatedly folding, clamping, and dyeing is an act of devotion and discovery.
I think about how connected all life forms are and how all life originates from tiny parts that band together to form patterns. I am inspired by the shapes and arrangements found in things like the flow of water, electrical energy currents and cells.
I love creating with dye and fabric because of the hands-on involvement and the labor-intensive techniques that slow the process of creation, forcing me to be both an active creator and observer simultaneously. I believe that each piece carries the thoughts and energy I experience while creating it. The process of making, and the end result, become a meditation.