October 2011 Canadian House and Home
Who is to blame? I suppose it isn’t fibre’s fault. Can society be blamed? North American society seems to have difficulty hanging fibre art on its walls. I realize writing this blog post about fibre as art is really just preaching to the choir, and most of you who work with fibre consider yourselves artists, and those of you who are still honing your technique probably have fibre art on your walls, but I feel compelled to write this post since recently being riled up by the October House and Home magazine.
My twice weekly hour and half ferry ride usually land me standing in front of the magazine stand in the gift shop. There I stand first flipping through my usual choices and then moving on to magazines about things I know nothing about like skateboarding.
This time with House and Home in my hands and just a few minutes before the ferry docked, I very quickly flipped through and there in the back saw a spread about fibre and decorating. I was thrilled, closed the magazine and purchased it. Later, on the bus, when I excitedly pulled it out of my bag I was disappointed when I found out they were calling fibre art – “Do it Yourself Art”.
So here (right) we have an acrylic box filled with raw wool, which according to House and Home is “Do it Yourself Art”. I must admit as a person with a fibre fetish it is neat, however, it seems more like storage, rather than art. Who would want to buy that quantity of raw wool (which is not inexpensive) just to put it in a clear box on the wall, where it can’t be touched.
Page 193 October 2011 House and Home
Next (left) we have a swatch of knitted fabric that looks as if it was cut out of an old sweater and placed into a shadow box.
Why bother? I ask myself. House and Home spins this “DIY art project” as a way to pay homage to “knitters and their craft” by displaying the three stages of production. Why not just invest in fibre art instead of turning your precious wall space into a museum exhibit? And a boring one at that. Any museum would likely make this hands on so you could at least touch the fibres.
To be fair and so that you can make your own judgement here is the display in full as represented in the magazine.
Just in case you weren’t aware that wool could be worked by an artist into fabulous pieces here are a few examples to wet your appetite.
"Knitted Urchins" by Patricia Brown
An excerpt from Patricia Brown’s artist statement says “The main inspiration and starting point for my work comes from nature. By experimenting with manipulation and construction I use yarns and fibres to interpret texture, form and the ever changing colours of the seasons, producing sculptural pieces which can cross the boundary between art and craft.”
"Art and Science #1" by Marjorie Taylor (2000)
This piece was pulled from the Museum of Fabric Brain Art. Yes, I said Fabric Brain Art. For more goto harbaugh.uoregon.edu/Brain/
So remember, when you’re looking for something to decorate your walls, art does not have to be done with paint and a brush. But I know you already know that… so spread the word and keep on supporting fibre artists!
