Fiber is the material of revolution. Think of Betsy Ross stitching an early version of the American flag or Eugène Delacroix’s Liberty holding colors aloft to usher in the French Revolution. In recent decades, boundary-shattering artists from Judy Chicago to Faith Ringgold have provided potent kindling for social and political movements by utilizing or referencing fiber. Live Wire explores fiber’s remarkable ability to conduct world-changing ideological currents. This national group show of contemporary fiber artists is presented in collaboration with the Española Valley Fiber Arts Center. Trace the conceptual threads of Live Wire below, and click individual artworks for statements from the artists.
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Thread: Urgency
Remarkable human resilience in the face of cruelty and crisis.
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Erika Diamond, Emergency Tapestry Series
Words from the ArtistMy hand-woven alpaca tapestries depict emergency instruction scenarios from first aid manuals, airline safety cards, and bathroom signs. I weave these symbols to question perceptions about physical interaction, danger, and control. They address the vulnerability and self-preservation negotiated during human interaction.
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Thread: Identity
Self-actualization amid trauma and erasure. Deep-throated cries of rage.
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Erin Galvez, Ritual Classification Series
Words from the ArtistMy ongoing series Ritual Classification explores the act of classifying and defining individuals and groups of people by the color of their skin. These methods are deeply embedded in the human psyche and exist in all cultures. The work leads the viewer to pause and consider how viewing through a filter of color still resounds today, and how we attach cultural meaning to skin color.
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Thread: Agency
Grasping for change and demanding visibility. Cutting through the digital crossfire.
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Robin Ossentjuk, Common Thread
Words from the ArtistHands are one of the most recognizable and expressive parts of the body. The image of the hand has been used throughout history as a symbol of power, community, and protest. Yet when taken out of context, multiplied, and layered, the forms become abstract and begin to evoke a sense of restlessness and disquiet.
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Thread: Ecology
Material ingenuity as political ideology. Wearables as protest vernacular.
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c marquez, 728
Words from the ArtistThe 3-D wall-mounted sculptural installation 728 is made from the seedpods and stems of the locally abundant tall-tumble-mustard plant, scientific name: Sisymbrium Altissimum. It is held together and attached to the gallery wall by tension and gravity, no glues, or hardware of any kind are used
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Thread: Cartography
Mapping divisions and seeking bridges. Engaging in hopeful speculative fictions.
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Martha Shade, I See Palestine Apart- Hide (This) Map
Words from the ArtistThis is a hand-stitched needlework tapestry depicting Palestine and its colonization, and is partially stitched in what I call my 'mosaic style'. The right side of the piece shows Palestine filled with representative cultural images, while the map on the left side is not a real place but represents an ideology that is based on supremacism and separation, enforced by the machines of war that maintain Apartheid and ethnic cleansing.
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Thread: Histories
Centering new historical protagonists. Imagining what could have been.
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Priscilla Dobler Dzul, El Volkswagen, 2020
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Tamara Burgh, The Enculturated White Man 1 (Ceremony Mask), 2000-2015
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Chris Roberts-Antieau, Abraham Lincoln Genius Eye, 2017
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Tamara Burgh, The Enculturated White Man 3 (Bug Duck), 2000-2015
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Tamara Burgh, The Enculturated White Man 7 (Handprint), 2000-2015
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Tamara Burgh, The Enculturated White Man 8 (Wedding Couple), 2000-2015
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Tamara Burgh, The Enculturated White Man 9 (Turkey Fish), 2000-2015
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Tamara Burgh, The Enculturated White Man 11 (Tassels & Corn), 2000-2015
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Tamara Burgh, The Enculturated White Man 13 (Navajo Fringe), 2000-2015
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Tamara Burgh, The Enculturated White Man
Words from the Artist"The Enculturated White Man" is a fine art representation of an America that recognized the value of its Indigenous peoples’ cultures; where the white man adopted Indian symbolism in art and dress and embraced the Indian world views, thereby attaining a more qualified, accurate, practical and empathic understanding of the Native American experience.
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