I learned rug making, quilting and crocheting as a child from the women in my family. Our conversations were never about art or design, rather the act of making, what was being made, and what would be made next. My Great-Grandmother was president of the Weavers Guild of Minnesota, and my family history of women in textiles goes back several decades in the US and Sweden. Prolific amounts of textiles were produced for their homes and the homes of others, using simple materials to create beautiful, functional and dynamic pieces that are now heirlooms. Growing up I saw this as something that people just do. Create. All the time.
My fascination with textiles and design led me to study garment construction, painting and fibers. I began a more conceptually-based practice using my skills to create highly detailed nonfunctional and functional pieces. I use yarn and a tufting machine to create large scale and I use rug hooking, yarn and ink to create smaller intimate pieces. My work is characterized as bright and vivid as I use both organically dyed yarns and commercially dyed materials. My method of incorporating different techniques and patterns into my art speaks to my learned applications of collage and painting and have been incorporated into my interpretation of traditional rug and quilt making.
For the past 15 years, my work has been about continuing tradition. Creating something beautiful with what materials are available, and exploring the depths of fiber as both contemporary artwork and functional handiwork to better understand and communicate with my inherent drive. While incorporating family designs and traditions in my work, I have been in search of my own unique voice as a way to preserve and celebrate the tradition passed down through generations. I begin my creative process by drafting designs that are welcoming, captivating and nostalgic. The grid at the foundation of my work is a continuation of my grandmother's crocheted block blankets, where colorful flowers or sun bursts would fill 5 x 5 inch square tiles. I speak with color and patterns to tell my story and I want people to feel comforted and to reflect on their own connection to textiles while experiencing my work.