Artist Biography
I started with a needle in my hand as a young girl in Idaho, with my grandmothers and aunts teaching me how to make quilts, clothes, and embroidery. I continued creating as I raised my family in Alaska, joining quilting guilds and entering my pieces in local exhibitions. My quilts became more dimensional over time, adding buttons, watermelon seeds, blown up balloons, or ribbons. Relocating to Snohomish, Washington in 1993 was when I truly started evolving as an artist. I earned an Art and Design/Experimental Stitch diploma, studying color and design elements, while playing with different stitches, multi-media, and construction techniques. In the decades since, my work has been featured in numerous books and articles, shows locally and globally, and private and public collections. I serve on the Schack Art Center Board, am a member of the Northwest Designer Craftsmen, and previously on the Snohomish County Arts Commission.
Artist Statement
I am mostly a fiber artist, as textiles have always been a safe harbor. However, I like to keep pushing myself, so my art has developed a more mixed-media slant. My journey has been shaped by my passion for experimentation. I view experimentation as an essential part of my process and look to my sense of humor and outlook on life for inspiration. Color palettes shift with my mood, ranging from earth tones to primary colors. I especially enjoy the discovery process as I play with various materials, different textures, and new techniques.]
My artwork and techniques have evolved as I’ve explored positives and negatives, patterns, lines, and shadows. Many of my pieces have incorporated unorthodox materials, as well as juxtaposing found objects with hand-stitch, in order to create movement.
Texture is also my muse. Anytime I can make a piece more tactile, I find it to be a success. I have been on a nature theme for some time. Roots and rocks have inspired past pieces, but it’s trees that have turned into a source of never-ending fascination and inspiration. Besides their wonderful textures and diverse colors, I am drawn to their mesmerizing lines and shapes.
This new series of vessels explores those textures, colors, and lines in the bark of trees from around the world. Bark is an accumulation of several different outer layers of a wood plant. Similarly, I create multiple layers by machine, by hand, or a combination of the two, to form my vessels. I try to add as much detail as possible, making these pieces very time-consuming. I am forced to slow down, taking my time to truly study what nature has so masterfully created as I attempt to emulate their beauty through stitch.
My work now incorporates elements of my past love of quilts along with my newer passion for experimental stitch, acrylics, print making, and other mediums. I don’t want to ever quit learning and growing as an artist. I’m grateful for the journey I have been on and can’t wait to see where it pulls me next.
(425)308-8636
© 2023 Terri Shinn
