Teresa Shields
Peachy Sprout
2020
Fiber art
7" x 5" x 1.5"

About the work

I divide my studio time between embroidery and felt-making. I look at nature - plant forms, geometry, colors, cell structures, bones, antlers, wings - to see the underlying connections that these things have in common.

My felted work is experimental. By using math to calculate shrinkage of wool fibers and partially-felted shapes, I reverse-engineer geometric or biomorphic three dimensional sculptures.

Felt-making has taught me patience. I have leaned into the process as I have become more experienced. Turning fine wool roving into solid material has always felt magical. Although my work is based on life experience, it is not directly autobiographical. Many of the themes relate to women's experiences, how we are viewed and treated. It is sometimes serious, other times quirky and playful, and teeters on the edge of viewer interaction.

I've been around fabric and stitching my whole life. I like it because of the human connection. I am the first generation in my family to elevate stitches into art.

About the artist

Teresa Shields received her BFA from Carnegie Mellon University and MFA from Massachusetts College of Art. She has shown her art in many group exhibitions in the U.S. and has won awards including first place in Madeley 2020 in Conroe TX, the Jurors Award at SDA's Small Works: Surface Design Association at 40 in Portland, OR., and 3rd Place at the 3rd Annual Conroe Art League National Invitational Show in Conroe, TX, and the Jurors Award at Studio Channel Island's Abundance exhibit in Camarillo, CA. May 2016 to November 2017, Teresa was resident fiber artist at Abington Art Center in Jenkintown, PA where she presented her interactive fiber installation 'Trending Threads' in their Solo Series Fall 2017 show. December 2018 to January 2019, 'Red Pepper' was exhibited in Wayne Art Center's Craft Forms 2018. Teresa's embroidery 'Crowning' was juried into Woodmere Museum's Second Nature: The Poetics of Re-presentation. Teresa is represented by Graver's Lane Gallery in Chestnut Hill, PA and is a member of InLiquid.

InLiquid, teresashieldsart.com

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