Warning: Visual Overload! (my inspiration)

I am often asked where I get inspiration for my work and it always seems that in the moment I'm not able to think about one person, place, or thing to refer to as my inspiration. However, thanks to social media tools like Pinterest, I can share images of things that inspire me everyday. Some things inspire me because of the colors, texture, and lines. Other things inspire me because of the way I feel when I look at it. Still, other artists inspire me with their stories of why they create. There is no single element the inspires my work, but a lifetime of looking and making.

Montana Living of Montana Møbler

Like I mentioned before, I like saving things - especially multiples of the same thing - and this desk looks like an amazing collection of drawers all painted pink, which would be perfect for my future art studio. The desk also looks like it is the same on the other side - like a mirror image - so that the storage space is double. Maybe I would finally be able to organize my art supply stash!

Cornelius by Julia Haft-Candell

And in my new house / studio I would definitely love to have this sculpture, Cornelious, by Julia Haft-Candell. The list of materials alone is intriguing:

Porcelain, terra cotta, glaze, epoxy resin, cotton, polyester, thread, ink, paper, pins, metal, screws

And I love the texture and lines - the open lace like quality - and the soft muted colors. I'm also very intrigued by this piece because it is porcelain and I have never been a huge fan of ceramics or sculpture in general. I also wonder how delicate this piece is because I'm sure I would want to examine it up close - touching all the tree branch looking parts and figuring out where the pieces are connected. I know, you're not supposed to touch the art, but if I buy it I could - right?

cross section of pine

I'm often inspired by the patterns created in nature. I came across some microscopic images of the cross-sections of plants and trees and found that they look suspiciously like knitting. I used this inspiration to create a body of work for a solo show I exhibited in December of 2012. For example, an image like this image of a cross section of a pine branch inspired a series of 8 fiber art pieces including the one pictured here. I created knit circular patterns and combined that with embroidery and paint.


Stem by Kelly Darke

I am inspired by the work of so many artists: painters, illustrators, crafters, print-makers, weavers... I am inspired by work that is similar to mine and work that is completely different than anything I would do. So often it is the feeling I get when looking at a particular piece of art that in the inspiration. I want to feel that again, I want remember how it felt. I want to create work that resonates with others in the same way.

Any and all work by Cy Twombly - the combination of color, texture, and line in his paintings is difficult to describe. It's difficult to know why it inspires me - it just does.


Hero and Leandro by Cy Twombly

Notes from Salalah (Notes II) by Cy Twombly

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I love the look of this fiber and mixed media mobile, but since I posted it on Pinterest over a year ago, the link only takes me to an Etsy page that says it's not available :( I don't know who made it, but maybe you do? I'll have to search a some more - I like the combination of colors and materials - natural and manmade objects.

This installation, Falling Garden, by Gerda Steiner and Jörg Lenzlinger is amazing! I can only imagine how it would feel to be surrounded by this...

Falling Garden

Fiber art - Weaving - Knitting - Texture - Embroidery - Stitching

Memory Threads by Emma Parker

Emma Parker, aka Stitch Therapy, creates personal stories in fiber or printing or animation - whatever medium she uses it is always intriguing, whimsical, fun, and always authentic.

Abigail Doan is an environmental fiber artist and writer creating art and installations - working in New York and Europe.