ABOUT THE EXHIBITION
Textiles are not seen as a fine art medium. While many argue no functional or practical work is fine art, and that the division between what is and is "not" is purely on a basis of purpose beyond aesthetic enjoyment, textiles do not receive the same elevation with purely aesthetic works that other media used for functional works do. There remains a gulf between traditionally 'feminine' crafts, such as textile work, and traditionally 'masculine' crafts, such as ceramics or woodworking, in being claimed by the fine arts world. I am enchanted with the idea of grabbing something that has been cast aside and instead thrusting it into center focus. I am, personally, contentious of the divide between ‘arts’ and ‘crafts’ altogether.
I have a similar sympathy for most things commonly overlooked, and I feel there is a beautiful synergy in taking an overlooked medium, and using it to create forms of things one often misses in their day to day life. In taking things like mushrooms and insects, and rendering them larger than life, I will have made two overlooked things impossible to ignore. This exhibit aims to challenge the preconceived notions of art versus craft, by transforming small, ordinary elements into grandiose larger-than-life spectacles. By magnifying often unnoticed details in nature, this exhibit encourages contemplation of the intricate beauty that surrounds us overlooked and unseen, and also invites visitors both to reconnect with the magic of the natural world, and to reconsider the artistic potential of textiles, emphasizing their profound ability to bring forth enchantment and provoke contemplation. By making the ordinary extraordinary, I seek to make the overlooked emerge instead as a resplendent focal point. In embracing the power of textiles as a fine art form, this installation seeks to bridge the divide between traditionally gendered crafts and elevate the status of soft sculpture within the realm of contemporary art.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Braeden is a mixed media artist that has seemingly responded to the demand to “pick a medium and niche” by instead making their hobby finding new hobbies. Born and raised in Taylor county, they have also lived in Louisiana and the East Midlands of England. A two time Hardin-Simmons graduate, armed with a psychology BA, and a BFA in painting and drawing, they flit between process and concept driven art. They work in a wide variety of media, with lots of abstract space, containing dreamlike and often nightmarish figures in deliberate spatially vague settings, and have recently gravitated toward heavily textural abstract forms and sculptural dreamscapes.
In 2018 they received an honorable mention in the Center for Contemporary Arts’ intercollegiate student art competition (ISAC), and then first place for photography in 2019. They were an active member in Kappa Pi from 2016 to 2018, and received the Kappa Pi Award their graduating year. After graduation, Braeden has done more sculptural work and has continued to experiment in the studio with an ever broadening array of different materials.