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Spraygraphic Interview with Artist Amber Coppings
By Spraygraphic | October 20, 2009
Spraygraphic Interview with Amber Coppings
SG: Please tell us about yourself?
AC: My full name is Amber Dawn Coppings. My parents almost named me Crystal Gail, so I am thankful they chose the right one.
My list of goals when I was 5-7 years old:
Make the World’s Largest Rug and get into the Guinness Book of World Records. Collect fossils and pretend to be a dinosaur as much as possible. Be a professional singer who also painted beautiful pictures in cities all over the world
My current list of goals includes: Traveling a lot in 2010. Becoming an amateur geologist. Create an Artist Retreat and Campground. Creating an art installation out of vintage appliances, silver knitted wire and hand-dyed silks.
SG: Where do you currently live and work?
AC: I live in Pittsburgh, PA and work from my home studio which has a great view of the city. We also get deer, numerous bunnies and loose neighborhood dogs in our yard.
SG: What mediums do you work with?
AC: Mainly, I work with all sorts of textiles…silks, cottons, fleece, vintage, scraps…Mostly natural fibers, but on occasion I find a polyester I can’t live without. I especially love to hand-dye my own fabrics using Japanese shibori fabric dyeing techniques (more about those below). Construction hardware is also something I use a lot like the 250 eye hooks I used in my recent art installation at the Mattress Factory. Vintage marbles, bottle and buttons have been my treasures since I was little, so they get incorporated into my work. For many years I have been crocheting and knitting precious metal wires into sculptures and wearable art. Recently, I had some surgical wire donated to me, so I am sure to be using that in something soon.
SG: Can you tell us a little about Textile Art?
AC: Everyone has a different definition for Textile Art (also known as Fiber Art). When I was in Japan, I attended the International Shibori Symposium. One of the Japanese panelists said “Everything is Fiber Art. We are made of muscles, which are fiber, we wear clothes that are fiber…” It struck a cord with me. Later, we discussed the different structure of Japanese art and Western art and how in the Japanese art world artwork is defined on a more horizontal scale based on materials rather than the Western vertical hierarchy. Maybe that is for another question, though…
The Textile Art definition I am most attuned with is one I stole from the Fiberart International 04 prospectus which went something like this: Anything that is made using a traditional fiber medium (yarn, thread, dye, etc…) and/or is constructed using a fiber construction technique (knitting, crocheting, weaving, embroidery, shibori…) can be considered a Textile Art piece. Sculpture, 2D art, Art Installation, Wearable Art and more could all theoretically be considered Textile Art.
SG: Can you tell us a little about Shibori?
AC: Shibori is the general term for hundreds of individual traditional Japanese fabric dyeing methods. There are three main categories to shibori fabric preparation. Nui Shibori refers to preparing cloth using thread and stitches, Itajime Shibori uses cloth folded and clamped in certain ways and Arashi Shibori requires wrapping the cloth around a piece of wood, or a PVC pipe to make a design. Most of the time, the artist takes out the stitches, unfolds, or unwraps the cloth after adding the color. However, many contemporary shibori artists leave in the design materials to become a part of the piece, or the “echo” of the object is left to create a three-dimensional surface (hence, my Echoes of Objects art installation and Bubble Wrap art-to-wear).
SG: Describe your working process when creating a new work.
AC: In my mind, I am always designing new pieces. I try to sketch them out as often as I can. I sketch best in color- black and white is too stagnant for me. If an idea really calls to me, I make a 3D sketch out of whatever materials I think it should be made out of. Lots of times, a piece does not come out of this stage. If I do decide to take it further, it usually takes months to go from sketch to actual piece. I like to incubate work and take it in small steps. Once a certain point is reached, maybe the exact color I was trying to achieve, or after perfecting a sewing technique, I will stop working on everything else and just go gung-ho on that one piece or series until I feel like it is done.
SG: What kind of things do you do when you get blocked or find it hard to create something?
AC: I do something else that is creative, or fun. Sometimes it requires studio time, sometimes I need to just stay the heck away from my studio and do something entirely different. Laying in a hammock and taking a tour of my garden helps.
SG: Where are you currently finding your inspiration?
AC: I recently took a jewelry class in a school near downtown Pittsburgh. As I left the first class, I looked at the familiar skyline and realized I had never really seen it at all. The jewelry I made from then on was all inspired by the skyscrapers. Also, I take a “tour” everyday of the flowers and plants in my backyard and have found some of the colors and motifs creeping into my studio work. Sunset and sunrise are beautiful at my home, so I let those colors affect the dyebaths I make. Couture Fashion is also something I have been taking a deeper look at and I have caught myself re-reading my Vogue sewing book a lot lately.
SG: Can you tell us a little about your business?
AC: Basically, I run a sole proprietorship that encompasses some of the creative and all of the administrative things I do. For instance, I have two lines of Textile production work: Xmittens Recycled + New Fashions and amtextiles art-to-wear. Both lines of work use Japanese shibori as inspiration and/or as the direct techniques. Xmittens is more fashion and function oriented and is a line of fingerless gloves, scarves, hoodie scarves and jackets that use various fabrics and sewn textures. amtextiles art-to-wear uses shibori dyeing and three dimensional techniques to create one of a kind shawls and scarves entitled “Bubble Wraps”. Also encompassed in my creative arts business are the classes I teach (shibori, crocheting with wire, etc…). It helps to have it officially proclaimed that I run a business because I can write most things off on my taxes and it helps to negotiate with other businesses and galleries.
SG: Where has your work been seen?
AC: My art installation “Echoes of Objects” was exhibited at the Mattress Factory museum in Pittsburgh in May-June 2009. Before that, I was chosen as an Emerging Artist by the American Craft Council and I exhibited my amtextiles art-to-wear line at their show in Baltimore in March. “Touch” was an interactive art installation that was a part of the Fiberart International in 2004.
Some of the photos are of these shows while others are of the wearable art I create. Some of them are of wearable art I created out of the fabric from the art installations.
SG: Where will it be seen next?
AC: I will have a piece in the Sleight of Hand Fiberarts Guild of Pittsburgh show in Spring 2010. So far, it is unlike anything I have ever done using silk scraps and quilting methods. My production work can be seen (and touched and worn) at many Indie Craft fairs from September-December (see my website for all the details).
SG: What is your dream art assignment?
AC: I would like to create an avant-garde giant extravaganza of wearable art using hand-dyed silks and knitted wire shapes. In yellow and silver.
An art installation using vintage appliances and knitted wire. Kind of inspired by Womanhouse at CalArts in the 70’s.
SG: What is your favorite color?
AC: deeporangeredmarigoldyellowcyan
SG: Who is your favorite artist? And Why?
AC: Issey Miyake and Ernesto Neto come to mind. Both play with fiber, sculpture, installation, our concepts of everyday objects and how we interact with them. Fascinating.
SG: What book/magazine are you reading this week?
AC: I am reading a book about a person who is reading the entire Encyclopedia Britannica. I like memoirs mixed with random facts. Also, a Terry Pratchett book silly sci-fi book.
SG: Where is your favorite place to hang out?
AC: My backyard! We have a nice homestead with a firepit, big sky, a young hawk who is currently learning how to fly. If I do get the socializing bug, I go to Kelly’s Pub in East Liberty. Good jukebox, cool people, very good mac n’ cheese.
SG: Any final words of advice?
AC: Be patient with yourself and your process. Back up any digital data!
ADDITIONAL LINKS:
Flickr
Amtextiles art-to-wear
Xmittens Recycled + New
Topics: Artist Interviews, Paintings, Sprayblog, Textiles and Sewing |
