Sarah Paul: The School of Fiber Chambers

The School of Fiber Chambers

The transformational power of sheep’s wool is thrilling. Water, soap and bare hands convert these wispy fibers into a boundless array of dimensional forms. Throughout this residency, I have let loose the reins on former methods of construction to embrace new techniques and strategies of fabrication with wool. My studio has become The School of Fiber Chambers, a frenetic laboratory of experimentation and risk intended to expand the future designs of the Fiber Chambers body of work. The result of this intensive material study lies before you, a surreal fusion of wet-felted wool with locally sourced found objects, secondhand fabrics, and video screens. Though some of these whimsical juxtapositions of form and material may feel light and even silly, the study is serious and purposeful. When approaching new work I never want to be trapped by my intentions. The School of Fiber Chambers has become a mindset as much as anything else. It is a reminder of the significance of looking closely and responding to the material in front of you. The plan was to develop new directions for a specific body of work…the journey has spawned much more than that. 

Artist Statement about the Fiber Chambers body of work:

Through media installation and objects, I’m addressing the precarious state of being out-of-body in order to consider how we manage physical and mental trauma. The wall-mounted objects in the Waves series offer abstract video content on household digital photo frames encased in fiber. Silk gauze and wool felt lattice present as ethereal appendages to the haunting little screens. Viewers are encouraged to lean in close to catch glimpses of the lush video and oddly warbling sound. The felt appears to be lit from within as the video saturates its fibers. The video content for all works in the Waves series was produced in the same manner. Since 2015 I have been experimenting with the real-space simulation of computer-generated special effects using handwoven textiles I create with mirrored mylar. All video is shot in slow-motion while I physically manipulate the woven mylar draped on a green grape arbor wet with dew and blanketed with sunlight. The sound is simply the slowed buzz of the bugs and birds of the arbor. At a time of perpetual shared trauma, I offer this work as a space for healing, rest and beguiling bliss.

I would like to thank Jessica Pinsky and Praxis Fiber Workshop for access to the natural dyes used in this exhibition. Thanks also go out to the Estate of Tina Cassara for donating an abundance of incredible textiles from Tina’s vast studio collection…works featuring these materials are designated on their label.

I’d like to acknowledge and thank Meryl Engler and Pita Brooks of Akron Soul Train for their support and patience through this unpredictable experience. Lastly, I am deeply thankful to the students, faculty and staff of the Sculpture + Expanded Media Department at the Cleveland Institute of Art for sharing their wonderful studio space with me throughout my residency. I truly believe that producing this work in such an open environment lent to the degrees of experimentation I was able to reach. 

Artist Bio:

Sarah Paul is an artist based in Cleveland, Ohio. She holds a BS in Mathematics from the University at Albany, and an MFA in Fine Art from the University at Buffalo. Paul is a recipient of several awards including the SPACES Satellite Fund, the Ohio Arts Council Individual Award for Excellence in Media Art, and a Creative Workforce Fellowship granted from Cuyahoga Arts and Culture. She has exhibited at the Riffe Gallery, the Akron Art Museum, Sculpture Center Cleveland, and Albright-Knox Gallery. Paul’s video work screens nationally and abroad and her art has been acquired by Progressive Art Collection and private estates. Sarah Paul is a Professor of Sculpture and Expanded Media at the Cleveland Institute of Art.