Elizabeth Pond-McPherson
Artist Statement
I fell into Fiber Sculpture through a series of events. My creative mother taught me that I could differentiate fine fabrics from cheap ones by "the hand" or feel of the fabric, leading to a perennial love for fiber that led to my collecting of vintage textiles from around the world. A group of friends had a hat felting party & soon after I came across a scarf that by virtue of a unique melding of fibers was a work of art. This inimitable fiber was called "nuno" felt (and later also known as silk fusion) so intrigued me that I was driven to learn more about felting.
During this period I was finally being treated for chronic illnesses (Lyme and other tick-borne and bizarre infections) that were due to being born without a functioning immune system so was able to attempt doing art again. When I found a felting workshop the timing was ideal and as luck would have it, Carole Beadle was the teacher of this workshop. She was the most inspiring teacher I had ever had and after that workshop when she asked if I could demo "needle felting" at the Marin Art Show, I jumped at the chance. Through this I learned that Carole taught "Fiber Sculpture", something I knew nothing of but seeing more of her work compelled me to study with her. Too ill to complete the class I was, nonetheless, consumed by Fiber Sculpture. I played around with ideas at home knowing that the act of creativity always helped me better deal with my illnesses. Soon, I went back (and back) and eventually was able to complete a class (and three more).
My creative process is usually one of unconscious evolution. Rarely do I begin with a fully realized piece in mind (other than perhaps an underlying political bent), as I enjoy playing with materials. By utilizing almost all recycled or "upcycled" materials, I let the ingredients lead me to a finished piece often entirely through "play" or now, with experience, I can, sporadically, intuit what will work, start to finish. As a collector of textiles (and more), I often respond to whatever in is at hand to see how it behaves with other parts I am toying with. I will often pick a material to include by how its color or structure interplays with another element. I Austin use vintage pieces but only if they're already damaged and I may get lucky with a practiced gut instinct or I may need periods of trial and error to finalize a work.
I also do shibori work (ancient Japanese tie-dying) primarily with indigo dye on silk. Indigo is derived from the plant Indigofera tinctoria and related species. Species of Indigofera were cultivated in ancient East Asia, Peru, India, and Egypt; the earliest evidence for the use of indigo was in Peru around 4000 BCE.
