Debra Smith
Debra Smith "Talking Stories 9" -- Abstract Silk Collage
2020

Name: Debra Smith "Talking Stories 9" -- Abstract Silk Collage
Brand: Debra Smith
Price: 900 USD
Availability: InStock

About the Item

Debra Smith Talking Stories 9, 2020 pieced vintage silk 13 1/2 x 11 1/4 in. This work will be on view as part of "Seeking Balance," a solo exhibition of new work by Debra Smith, at Kathryn Markel Fine Arts from January 9 - February 15 This most recent body of work is the result of both an intuitive process, formed from years of working with historic textiles, and a mindful practice. Each work is an open expression, constructed in an extraordinary way - with hours of stitching, embedding layer upon layer of material. With the visual sensibilities of a painter, Smith manipulates stripes and forms shapes with a gestural, geometric abstraction. She intuitively pieces found silk fabrics from vintage kimonos and men’s suit linings into a specific and well-developed visual language that relates more fully to drawing and painting than to the nature of textiles. These materials from the intimate interiors of traditional garments carry a conceptual weight. The austere stripes of men’s suit linings are similar in texture, but have a more striking presence, to the women’s kimono fabric in soft, transparent shades of ivory. These contrasting elements come together to form a strong visual balance of masculine and feminine. Despite complex underlying dualities of artist and artisan, masculine and feminine, gestural and constructed, the end result is a pleasingly straight-forward visual vocabulary. Smith’s work has been exhibited across the United States over the past two decades, including Shifting Visions, Puerh (2019), Synesthesia: Collaboration of Senses, Studios INC (2019), and 40th Anniversary Exhibition, Olson-Larsen Gallery (2019). In 2012, Smith was honored as one of the Women to Watch 2012: Focus on Fiber & Textiles from The National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, DC. After living in Brooklyn, NY, for over a decade, Smith returned to her native Midwestern roots in 2004. She now lives in Kansas City, where she continues to create art from vintage textiles.

Creator:

Debra Smith

Creation Year:

2020

Dimensions:

Height: 13.5 in (34.29 cm)Width: 11.25 in (28.58 cm)

Medium:

Textile,Silk

Movement & Style:

Abstract

Period:

2010-