Adversatio (Eggshells)

I began creating these combinations of felted wool and eggshells during the COVID-19 shelter-in-place period that began in March of 2020. This body of work is titled ‘Adversatio;’ I tend to name bodies of work in Latin to link them to scientific nomenclature of specimens. I also like the slight distancing from everyday language that can enfold meaning in a less direct fashion. Adversatio translates to ‘opposition,’ which fits both the physicality and themes of these sculptures that bring together eggshells and wool. Eggshells serve a role of being both protective and breakable; they speak to both fragility and strength. While a broken eggshell may suggest destruction it can also be evidence of new life or life-sustaining sustenance. Wool fibers are loose, soft, fluffy, and amorphous, yet they can be shaped into firm, dense, solid felt. These works are a response to the feelings of uncertainty, fear, loss, protection, and hope amid a pandemic.

For me the process of making these pieces is soothing and absorbing; needle felting on a small scale is an exacting yet repetitive activity. The addition of eggshells means I ride the line between satisfaction and destruction-- or change of direction-- depending on my fine motor skills and the vicissitudes of calcium carbonate shards.

The resulting square panels bring me a sense of order; while each individual piece is a reaction to specific shell fragments, all espouse clean lines and tight control. Neither eggshells nor wool are precious commodities, yet I find both animal products to be rather wondrous upon deep examination. I hope the intimacy and detail captured in these pieces communicate wonder along with the sense of unlikely opposition on multiple levels.

Four Adversatio on blue wall w plant.jpg

Teddy Bear Unnatural History

Teddy bears at first appear trivial: playthings for children and symbols of innocence, comfort, and nostalgia. But the teddy bear is also an allegory for the way humans manipulate the natural world to our own ends. The anatomy of the teddy bear is designed to appeal to the biological response of human adults to care for their cute, round-featured, helpless babies. The tiny, sharp teeth in my teddys’ skulls serve as a reminder of the apex predator that inspired them.

To create my teddy bear natural history pieces I start with various breeds and reverse engineer the physical 'evidence' of their biological history in needle-felted wool, a material perfectly suited to representing fuzzy and soft yet firm and structural bones and tissues of stuffed animals.

Learn about the origin story of felted wool teddy bear skulls through my UnNatural History blog. Shop for photographic prints, tee shirts, and stickers in my online UnNatural Designs store, or commission your own sculptural skeletal portrait of your favorite teddy bear.

Teddy Bear Unnatural History

Ursulus mellitas, Ursulus solicitudo disneyus, Ursulus gasterpectus, wool on steel stands, 2006.

Ursulus machaera dente, wool, steel stand, glass dome, 5.25" x 7" x 6.5", 2016. Private Collection.

Ursulus machaera dente, detail, wool, steel stand, glass dome, 5.25" x 7" x 6.5", 2016. Private Collection.

Ursulus melias and source teddy bear 'Melia'; wool on steel stand, 4.25" x 6" x 5.5", 2015. Commissioned piece.

Ursulus teodorus ruxpinus and source bear, wool and steel stand, 5" x 5.5" x 5.25", 2014. Commissioned by National Centre for Craft & Design, U.K.

Ursulus propegena, wool, 3.5" x 6" x 5", 2016.

Ursulus propegena, wool, glass and wood case, 7" x 9.5" x 9.5", 2016.

Teddy Bear Fetal Development, wool, buttons; framed, 7.75" x 23" x 3", 2007. Private Collection.

Ursulus parvulus casia, wool, buttons, glass jar, 9" x 5" x 5", 2016.

Ursulus parvulus 10-08, wool, buttons, glass jar, 7" x 3.5" x 3.5", 2008. Private Collection.

Ursulus parvalus adsicco, wool and buttons in jar, 7" x 3.5" x 3.5", 2016. Private Collection.

Ursulus evolvere, wool and buttons, framed; 7.25" x 15" x 1.75", 2014. Private Collection.

Flesh & Bone Sculpture

‘Flesh and Bone’ is a series of small studies and human-sized sculptures made of needle-felted wool that reference parts of the body, from soft weighty folds of flesh to the stripped down abstract architecture of bones. The features of each extreme—rigid, angular edges and plump creases and dimples—blend into each other in a sort of logic that develops as I construct the piece and imagine the forces acting upon it. Find available ‘Flesh and Bone’ felted wool fiber sculpture in my online store.

Flesh & Bone Installation View

Left to right: Large Flesh & Bone #3 (Butterfly Pelvis), Large Flesh & Bone #2 (Serrated Soft Skull), and Flesh & Bone Panel Study #2

Left to right: Large Flesh & Bone #1 (Arched Openings), Flesh & Bone Panel Study #1 (Scalloped Folds), Flesh & Bone Study #4 (Shell/Flesh)

Large Flesh & Bone #4 (Hanging Pod), wool, industrial felt, and polyurethane foam, 30” x 12” x 16”, 2015. Private collection.

Large Flesh & Bone #3 (Butterfly Pelvis), wool, industrial felt and steel, 27" x 35" x 9", 2013. Private collection.

Large Flesh & Bone #2 (Serrated Soft Skull), wool and industrial felt, 30" x 40" x 36", 2013

Large Flesh & Bone #1 (Arched Openings), wool and industrial felt, 30" x 55" x 30", 2012

Flesh & Bone Study #13 (Hanging Shell), wool, industrial felt, 13" x 5.25" x 4.5", 2017

Flesh & Bone Study #12, wool, plexiglass stand, 11.5" x 7" x 4", 2017

Flesh & Bone Study #11, wool, 6.5" x 7.75" x 6.5", 2017

Flesh & Bone Study#10 (Petal Swirl), wool, 8" x 8" x 5", 2015. Private collection.

Flesh & Bone Study #8 (Twisting Fin), wool and wood, 10.5" x 6.25” x 3.5", 2014

Flesh & Bone Study #7 (Curled Wing), wool, 7" x 10.5" x 5", 2013. Private collection.

Flesh & Bone Study #6 (Hanging Half Skull), wool and industrial felt, 18" x 12" x 21", 2013. Private collection.

Flesh & Bone Study #5 (Butterfly Pelvis), wool and plexiglass, 7.5" x 4" x 1.5", 2013. Private collection.

Flesh & Bone Study #4 (Shell/Flesh), wool and plexiglass, 11" x 7.25" x 4.5", 2013. Private Collection.

Flesh & Bone Study #3, (Sacrum/Vessel), wool, 11" x 6.5" x 6.5", 2013

Flesh & Bone Study #2 (Teardrop Foramen), wool, 11" x 12.5" x 3.5", 2012. Private collection.

Flesh & Bone Study #1 (Suspended Wings), wool and plexiglass, 7" x 6" x 1.5", 2012. Private collection.

Flesh & Bone Panel Study 4 (Fossa Chain), wool, industrial felt, foam, and wood, 21” x 21” x 6”, 2015. Private collection.

Flesh & Bone Panel Study #1 (Scalloped Folds), wool, industrial felt, foam, and wood, 21” x 21” x 4”, 2013. Private collection.

Flesh & Bone Panel Study #2 (Fold Valley), wool, industrial felt, foam, and wood, 21 x 21 x 6”, 2013.

Flesh & Bone Wool Drawings

These ‘Flesh and Bone’ wool drawings come from the same intention as the related fiber sculptures: an attempt to examine and blend the soft and hard parts of organic forms in novel ways.

Wool drawings are images created when I push wool fibers through paper with a notched felting needle, using the colored wool to define line and shadow.

Some of these wool drawings are available in my online sculpture shop.

Flesh & Bone Wool Drawing #5 (Serpentine), wool through paper, 30” x 22”, 2017. Private Collection.

A drawing made by pushing wool fibers through paper as a form of pigment; this piece is serpent-like, with undulating folds of flesh.

Flesh & Bone Wool Drawing #5, detail (Serpentine), wool through paper, 30” x 22”, 2017. Private Collection.

A drawing made by pushing wool fibers through paper as a form of pigment; detail shows the use of brown and black fibers to create medium and dark tones; light tones are achieved by allowing more paper to show through.

Flesh & Bone Wool Drawing #4 (Fossa Pod), wool through paper, 30” x 22”, 2017. Private Collection.

A drawing made by pushing wool fibers through paper as a form of pigment; this piece combines elements of a skeletal system with a seed pod.

Flesh & Bone Wool Drawing #4, detail (Fossa Pod), wool through paper, 30” x 22”, 2017

Detail view of this wool drawing shows darker areas using black wool, medium areas using brown wool, and lightest areas that have only a thin layer of brown wool, allowing paper to show through.

Flesh & Bone Wool Drawing #4, detail (Fossa Pod), wool through paper, 30” x 22”, 2017

This extreme closeup shows not just the fibers used as pigment, but their shadows on the paper as well. Wool drawings have fiber on the surface of the paper that has been partly pushed through to anchor it in place.

Flesh & Bone Wool Drawing #3 (Shell), wool through paper, 22” x 15”, 2017

A drawing made by pushing wool fibers through paper as a form of pigment; this composition includes linear and shaded elements that suggest soft fullness as well as hard edges. This piece is available through my online sculpture shop.

Flesh & Bone Wool Drawing #3, detail (Shell), wool through paper, 22” x 15”, 2017

This extreme detail view of my wool drawing shows the way I manipulate the wool to create linear elements as well as light and dark areas. This wool drawing is available through my online sculpture shop.

Flesh & Bone Wool Drawing #2 (Bone Corset), wool through paper, 22” x 15”, 2017

This one-of-a-kind wool drawing through paper blends hard and soft organic elements in an imagined composition. This wool drawing is available through my online sculpture shop.

Flesh & Bone Wool Drawing #2, detail (Bone Corset), wool through paper, 22” x 15”, 2017

This closeup view of a wool drawing shows the use of dark fiber pushed through paper to outline and define forms. This wool drawing is available through my online sculpture shop.

Flesh & Bone Wool Drawing #2, detail (Bone Corset), wool through paper, 22” x 15”, 2017

This extreme closeup of a wool drawing shows the subtle use of brown and black pigment to create shaded areas that suggest depth and sculptural form. This wool drawing is available through my online sculpture shop.

Flesh & Bone Wool Drawing #1 (Ring), wool through paper, 22” x 15”, 2017. Private collection.

This wool drawing suggests both flesh and bone combined into one imagined organic form.

Flesh & Bone Wool Drawing #1, detail (Ring), wool through paper, 22” x 15”, 2017. Private collection.

This closeup view of a wool drawing reveals the individual fibers that create the illusion of form.

Calamus (Wool and Quill forms)

These organically-inspired fiber sculptures combine wool fibers and porcupine quills to communicate a sense of contrast, tension, and potential. Calamus is Latin for quill; porcupine quills are in fact modified hairs. To create these works I use the technique of poking notched felting needles into masses of loose wool fibers to shape them into firm, dimensional, captivating forms. I incorporate sharp dual-toned porcupine quills to create sculptures that are both entrancing and menacing. Find one available in my online sculpture shop.

Calamus anguis, wool and porcupine quills in glass dome, 7" x 9.5" x 9.5", 2017.

Calamus anguis, detail, wool and porcupine quills in glass dome, 7" x 9.5" x 9.5", 2017.

Calamus plicatilus, wool and porcupine quills, 4" x 2" x 3.5," 2014. Private collection.

Calamus cocleatus, wool and porcupine quills, 3.5” x 3.5” x 1.75”, 2015. Private collection.

Calamus eris, wool and porcupine quills, 3.5" x 2.75" x 4," 2014. Private collection.

Calamus dentium curvo, wool and porcupine quills, 3.5” x 3.5” x 1.75”, 2016. Private collection.

Calamus deprimo, wool and porcupine quills on panel, 6" x 6" x 3.75," 2014. Private collection.

Calamus dorsus, wool and porcupine quills on panel, 6” x 5.5” x 2.5”, 2014.

Calamus prinus, wool and porcupine quills, 2.5" x 3" x 2.5," 2014. Private collection.

Calamus nutrix, wool and porcupine quills, 5" x 3" x 2.5," 2014. Private collection.

Calamus serpens, wool and porcupine quills, 3" x 1.25" x 3.5", 2014. Private collection.

Calamus sumen, wool and porcupine quills, 3.5” x 3.5” x 2.25”, 2014. Private collection.

Calamus orbis, wool and porcupine quills on panel, 6” x 5.5” x 2.5”, 2014. Private collection.

Calamus arcus, wool and porcupine quills, 3.5” x 3.5” x 1.75”, 2014. Private collection.

Calamus brucus, wool and porcupine quills, 4.5" x 2.5" x 4," 2016. Private collection.

Calamus brucus, detail, wool and porcupine quills, 4.5" x 2.5" x 4," 2016. Private collection.

Amorphozoa (abstracted creatures)

These felted wool fiber sculptures aim to distill the essence of a creature-- to functionally and aesthetically simplify living organisms to mere suggestions of parts, tactilely intriguing and low maintenance. Mimicking the dichotomy of the concept of nature conceived in a lab they are warm yet cool and aloof, cuddly yet strange and menacing.

Each of these organic abstract forms were inspired by familiar, common living creatures, with a deep and careful focus on interesting details.

Amorphozoa refers to animals without a mouth or regular internal organs.

Some of these sculptures can be purchased from my online sculpture shop.

Amorphozoa #12, wool and hair, 7.5" x 12" x 6", 2010. Private collection.

Amorphozoa #11, wool and porcupine quills, 8.5" x 7" x 5.5", 2009. Private collection.

Amorphozoa #11, detail, wool and porcupine quills, 8.5" x 7" x 5.5", 2009. Private collection.

Amorphozoa #15, wool and porcupine quills, 3.25" x 6" x 8", 2010. Private collection.

Amorphozoa #8, wool and hair, 6.25" x 6.25" x 7.75", 2009. Private collection.

Amorphozoa #5, wool and hair, 7.5" x 4.25" x 5", 2009

Amorphozoa #5, detail, wool and hair, 7.5" x 4.25" x 5", 2009

Amorphozoa #7, wool and porcupine quills 10.25" x 7.25" x 4.5" 2009

Amorphozoa #7, detail, wool and porcupine quills 10.25" x 7.25" x 4.5" 2009

Amorphozoa #9, wool and porcupine quills, 6.5" x 7" x 6.5", 2009. Private collection.

Amorphozoa #9, detail, wool and porcupine quills, 6.5" x 7" x 6.5", 2009. Private collection.

Amorphozoa #3, wool and hair 8" x 5.25" x 6" 2009

Amorphozoa #3, detail, wool and hair 8" x 5.25" x 6" 2009

Amorphozoa #13, wool, 17" x 6" x 4", 2010. Private collection.

Amorphozoa #13, detail, wool, 17" x 6" x 4", 2010. Private collection.

Amorphozoa #14, wool and porcupine quills, 13.5" x 7" x 3", 2010. Private collection.

Amorphozoa #14, detail, wool and porcupine quills, 13.5" x 7" x 3", 2010. Private collection.

Amorphozoa #1, wool, 4.75" x 6.75" x 11", 2009

Avicular (bird-like forms)

These abstracted organic sculptural forms have been rendered in wool and hair. Inspired by details and silhouettes of birds, the visibly soft yet precise and detailed fiber sculptures suggest moments of rest between motion.

Avicular means ‘bird-like’.

Selected original artworks are available through the online sculpture shop.

Avicular #12, wool and hair 5.75" x 4.25" x 8.25" 2012

Avicular #12, detail, wool and hair 5.75" x 4.25" x 8.25" 2012

Avicular #4, wool and hair, 5.5" x 4" x 10.5", 2009. Private collection.

Avicular #8, wool and hair, 4.25" x 4" x 9.75", 2009. Private collection.

Avicular #6, wool and hair 4" x 4.25" x 9" 2009

Avicular #9, wool and hair 3.75" x 4.5" x 9.75" 2009

Avicular #13, wool and hair 9" x 4.25" x 10.5" 2012

Avicular #13, detail, wool and hair 9" x 4.25" x 10.5" 2012

Avicular #10, wool and hair, 4" x 4.25" x 9.25", 2012. Private collection.

Avicular #10, detail, wool and hair, 4" x 4.25" x 9.25", 2012. Private collection.

Avicular #11, wool and hair, 10.5" x 5.75" x 7.25", 2012. Private collection.

Avicular #11, detail, wool and hair, 10.5" x 5.75" x 7.25", 2012. Private collection.

Loricae (Metal mesh forms)

Loricae refers to chain mail, which was historically used for both its function and communication capabilities-- for physical protection, but also to declare wealth, kinship, rank, and status. These fiber-and-metal creatures are meant to read as both defensive and decorative, and are another foray into combining materials the complement and yet undermine the soft quality of wool. The fleshy underbellies appear vulnerable yet robust. The aluminum metal mesh used as armor or scales for these creatures comes from antique evening bags- a form of social armor in themselves.

Selected sculptures are available to purchase through my online sculpture shop.

Lorica #6, wool and metal mesh, 10" x7.5" x 7", 2012

Lorica #6, detail, wool and metal mesh, 10" x7.5" x 7", 2012

Lorica #5, wool and metal mesh, 3.75" x 2" x 3.25", 2011. Private collection.

Lorica #5, detail, wool and metal mesh, 3.75" x 2" x 3.25", 2011. Private collection.

Lorica #4, wool and metal mesh, 4.5" x 11" x 5.5", 2012

Lorica #4, detail, wool and metal mesh, 4.5" x 11" x 5.5", 2012

Lorica #3, wool and metal mesh, 6" x 5.5" x 5.5", 2012

Lorica #3, detail, wool and metal mesh, 6" x 5.5" x 5.5", 2012

Lorica #2, wool and metal mesh, 9" x 8" x 10", 2011

Lorica #2, detail, wool and metal mesh, 9" x 8" x 10", 2011

Pelts (clothing and hair)

These sculptures combine fiber and found textiles: needle-felted wool animates, supports, and undermines antique dresses and undergarments.

The ‘Pelt’ sculptures came about when I first became a parent; the intense and emotional drive to care for, feed, and protect my young felt deeply personal and yet common throughout the animal kingdom. The messy, uncontrollable, and immensely satisfying elements of being a mother brought home to me that for all my education, tool use, and language, I am essentially a mammal.

One hallmark of being a mammal is possessing hair—something humans routinely try to shape, deny, remove, and contain that persists nonetheless. In this work I combine found clothing items that carry their own layers of meaning with hair that intrudes on and reshapes them as a reassertion of the closeted mammal inside.

Selected ‘Pelt’ sculptures can be found for sale in my online sculpture shop.

Hair Petticoat, wool and found textiles, 12" x 12" x 11", 2009

Hair Petticoat, detail, wool and found textiles, 12" x 12" x 11", 2009

Pink Checkered Dress, wool and found textiles, 20" x 18" x 1.5", 2009

Pink Checkered Dress, detail, wool and found textiles, 20" x 18" x 1.5", 2009

Training Bra, wool and found textiles, 18" x 15" x 2”, 2009

Training Bra, detail, wool and found textiles, 18" x 15" x 2”, 2009

X-Ray Dress, wool, found textiles, LED lights, 36.5" x 28.5" x 2”, 2009

X-Ray Dress, detail, wool, found textiles, LED lights, 36.5" x 28.5" x 2”, 2009

Apron, wool and found textiles, 23" x 31" x 2", 2009

Apron, detail, wool and found textiles, 23" x 31" x 2", 2009

Baptism Pelt, wool and found textiles, 25" x 25" x .5", 2009

Baptism Pelt, detail, wool and found textiles, 25" x 25" x .5", 2009

Wool Drawings

These unique images are what I call ‘wool drawings’: instead of pigment, I use dark-colored fibers pushed through paper to make marks that read as dark and light for a dimensional and graphic effect. From afar these look as though they’re made with ink or charcoal, but close-up views reveal individual fibers that project from the paper.

Often my subject matter comes from the natural world— or rather the somewhat altered world of domesticated and overbred species. I have a particular fondness for ‘fancy pigeon’ breeds as well as crows. Both types of bird seem to inspire extreme positive or negative reactions in people.

Selected original artworks are available through my online wool drawing shop.

Two Crows, wool through paper, 22" x 15", 2017. Private Collection.

Two Crows, detail, wool through paper, 22" x 15", 2017. Private Collection.

French Mondain, wool through paper, 30" x 22", 2016. Private Collection.

French Mondain, detail, wool through paper, 30" x 22", 2016. Private Collection.

Berlin Short-faced Tumbler, wool through paper, 30" x 22", 2016.

Berlin Short-faced Tumbler, detail, wool through paper, 30" x 22", 2016.

Pygmy Pouter, wool through paper, 30" x 22", 2016.

Pygmy Pouter, detail, wool through paper, 30" x 22", 2016.

Marchanero Pouter, wool through paper, 22" x 30", 2016.

Marchanero Pouter, detail, wool through paper, 22" x 30", 2016.

Maltese, wool through paper, 30" x 22", 2007.

Maltese, detail, wool through paper, 30" x 22", 2007.

Modena, wool through paper, 30" x 22", 2007.

Bird Leg Gesture 1, wool through paper, 15" x 11", 2007. Private Collection.

Bird Leg Gesture 2, wool through paper, 15" x 11", 2007.

Bird Leg Gesture 3, wool through paper, 15" x 11", 2007. Private Collection.

Bird Leg Gesture 4, wool through paper, 15" x 11", 2007. Private Collection.

Bird Leg Gesture5, wool through paper, 11" x 15", 2007. Private Collection.

Damask Blackbird, wool through paper, 30" x 22", 2007.

Damask Crow, detail, wool through paper, 30" x 22", 2007.

Damask Familia Blackbird, wool through paper, 30" x 22", 2007. Private Collection.

Damask Hummingbird, wool through paper, 12" x 9", 2014.

Damask Hummingbird, detail, wool through paper, 12" x 9", 2014.

Pigeon, wool through paper, 12" x 9", 2014. Private Collection.

Pigeon, detail, wool through paper, 12" x 9", 2014. Private Collection.

Blackbird Chorus, wool through paper, 15" x 11", 2007. Private Collection.

Overbreeding

My 'overbred' creatures are a series of animals that bear the imagined results of domestication pushed to absurdity. The attributes that make them appealing, useful, marketable, and handy for human use are rather short-sighted and human-centric. They are both strange and familiar, and arouse amusement, sympathy and curiosity. It is not impossible to imagine that they may soon come to be, through breeding and bioengineering.

I create these fiber sculptures through a process called ‘needle-felting’: using a specialized notched needle to poke at, compress, and shape wool fibers into freestanding sculptures.