Elevating Fiber Art
In August, faculty member J Blackwell ’95 discussed their Neveruses artworks with Phaidon. Blackwell’s work elevates the cultural status of materials that might otherwise be considered garbage. The artist’s work is included in a new publication Vitamin T—a first-of-its-kind global survey of more than 100 artists, chosen by art-world professionals for their work with threads, stitching, and textiles. Blackwell recently had their work exhibited in a solo shows at Kate MacGarry in London and will have another solo show at the ¿ÐýÃŹÙÍø Museum in May 2020.
Within the Modernist paradigm textiles have been disparaged as pedestrian, feminine, ephemeral, queer, exotic, decorative, and/or superficial. Modernism’s troubled relationship to textiles is very interesting to me as a person who has faced similar dilemmas. I think textiles are compelling to me because I see parallels between their social history and my own daily life. J Blackwell ’95 speaking with Phaidon