This textile artwork features a unique blend of elements. The central feature is a circular weaving on the shell, symbolizing unity and continuity. A small turtle motif is intricately incorporated, representing care and preservation. Intricate woven grids on the foreleg showcase interconnectedness in Portland, Oregon, while the hind leg displays an embroidered circle of life, illustrating the cyclical nature of existence. This piece harmoniously combines nature, interconnectedness, and the essence of life into a captivating creation.
I use natural colors to represent the four cardinal directions. This has a calming effect, centering the viewer in balance with the environment. All around, a river flows through the mountains at sunrise.
At the center of this weaving is a woman who fell asleep in a chaotic world, surrounded by the refuse of the past. She imagines that she will awaken in a new world. The refuse will become flowers. Her braided hair has become the atmospheric perspective of the forest ridgelines at dawn. The weaving shows the Sun and trees in harmony. The chaotic tangle around her is a fiber-collage of refuse textiles found around Portland, transformed into a new artwork — materially representing the revitalized world she hopes to wake up to.
Inmigrantes-Ilegales is a textile piece I did for people who are coming to the USA with a hope that they are going to make it.
Sold at Portland Open Studios on October 12, 2025
This work shows a woman made of mountains — Mother Earth. Her hair, a fiber-collage, shows a cascading river of the materials of human culture flowing through her landscape. There are fragments of many cultures and stories flowing together as one river. She looks up to see the Sun, her partner. It is shown as a circular weaving with embroidery and layered cloth.
