Birth Stories Canvases Accepted into 64th Parallel at the Fairbanks Arts Association - and an Honorable Mention!

I’m so excited and honored to be able to announce that Birth Stories #007 and Birth Stories #010 were accepted into the 64th Parallel Art Show at the Bear Gallery at Fairbanks Arts Association! Birth Stories #007 also got an Honorable Mention award from the juror. This is an annual fall juried show that open to all Interior Alaskan artists and it so beautiful to know that my pieces are showcased amongst such utter brilliance!

This is the one that received an Honorable Mention.

We attended the Opening Reception last night and it was a really lovely time. It is always fascinating to see the way that a juror constructs a juried show. There was a definite and consistent sense of curation and cohesion in the still incredibly diverse show this month.

You should definitely go see it if you are local to Fairbanks.

The 2023 64th Parallel show will be on display all month in the Bear Gallery at Pioneer Park in the third floor of the Centennial Center. Both pieces are framed and available for purchase through the Gallery.

Birth Story

Birth Story weaves together the hand written birth stories of nearly a dozen women, using their words on paper as weft with textural handspun and handdyed yarns. Tapestry techniques combine with a loom controlled multishaft weave pattern, and are accented by braided plaits and twisted fringe to tell a multi-voiced story of bringing new life into the world - combining experiences of joy and of trauma - that pulls from a rich history of “women’s work” including weaving, midwifery, and parenthood while it looks looks towards a future where birthing bodies are honored and supported in their most vulnerable and sacred moments. 

Birth Story physically represents the collective wisdom and life experience found in sharing stories of the birth experience. At times joyful and empowering or even orgasmic, at times traumatic and disempowering, and at times everything in between; birth is often a pivotal moment in the life of the bearer. This piece represents these experiences by literally using the handwritten accounts of over a dozen firsthand birth experiences of women across the USA and Europe as weft. Weaving ink-and-emotion-on -paper into this piece was a profound experience and I’m so honored and humbled that my collaborators were willing to share their experiences in this way.

Birth Story was woven in 2019 as part of the Birth collection. It was exhibited in the 2019 64th Parallel, Fairbanks Arts Association’s annual juried art show featuring Interior Alaskan works. It currently resides in a private collection.