Re-inventing Fiber

November 9th, 2009 at 10:51am JenScan

As we prepare our show, we are often struck by the impressive personal stories of the artists we are planning to include. With this in mind, we wanted to share a bit about fiber artist Lenore Tawney.

Lenore Tawney in 1959

Before World War II, fiber art in the United States and Europe had been associated with intimate domestic work, that often supported a status quo in which women were gentle, sweet, and decorative (though some art historians have made a strong case for a more nuanced reading of the issue: See, among others, Rozsika Parker’s The Subversive Stitch: Embroidery and the Making of the Feminine). Lenore Tawney was among a handful of pioneers that make bold artistic statements with their fiber, hanging it on the wall to reveal its complexity, experimenting with new materials and weaves to change perceptions, eventually moving it into three dimensions to redefine sculpture.  

She was 52 when the above picture was taken in 1959. In 1961, she had her first solo exhibition at the Staten Island Museum which according curators Mildred Constantine and Jack Lenor Larsen, was “the point at which Art Fabric was healthfully and joyously launched in America.” (props to the Staten Island Museum for being bold innovators).

This picture demonstrates her beauty and intensity so well—I love it when a photograph of an artist can capture the essence of the artist’s work. 

We have a number of great pieces by Lenore Tawney in the collection–you can find them by going to our collections database here and typing “Tawney” in the search box on the upper right. You can also find out more about Lenore Tawney in this great article in  American Craft magazine as well as this one in Fiberarts.

Entry Filed under: crafting modernism,from the curators,mad collection