blog – Deidre Adams

Translations – a gallery for textile art

“Translations Gallery is a new art gallery in Denver, CO that is serving as a multitextural venue for both established and emerging artists. The gallery is an ambassador furthering the advancement of textile and fiber art forms on local, national, and international levels. Also, Translations Gallery is recognized as a destination for enthusiasts of these more contemporary art mediums.”
From the KMGH Channel 7 A*list web site listing.

Textile artists are indeed fortunate to have this top-notch venue dedicated to their art form. Gallery owner Judy Hagler and gallery manager Kate Merkel, along with the entire staff, are tireless in their efforts to promote textile art and artists. Their list of nationally and internationally known textile and fiber artists is indeed impressive. I feel especially lucky to have this gallery so close to home!

The piece next to the sign in the above photo is my Composition I, available at Translations Gallery.

Their current exhibition is weavings by James Koehler, on view through February 9.

January 23rd, 2008|Miscellaneous|Comments Off

disruption gets a book cover

I’m super excited to see my piece disruption on the cover of this book. They’ll be sending me a copy, which I can’t wait to read. Here’s what it’s about:

Public Things: Democracy in Disrepair
by Bonnie Honig

Examines the rise of neoliberalism by focusing not on the demos but on the objects of democratic life.
Asks what becomes of democracy when the things of public life–schools, parks, monuments, utlilities and services–all become privatized.
Attends to the historically racial character of public things and how the erosion of democracy disproportionately affects on indigenous populations in particular.

I don’t usually feel comfortable being overtly political in my work, but at a private level these are the kinds of things I had in mind when I was making this work. Our society is incredibly polarized — we mostly agree that things aren’t good or getting better, but we are incapable of coming together to figure out what to do about it. The wealth gap is widening daily — the rich have more and more, while the poor and middle class are left to fight over the scraps. Resources are disappearing at a frightening rate, yet we don’t seem to be able to do anything about it.

The piece followed on from my Excavations series, which consists of found papers: books and newspapers in different languages, maps, sheet music, religious and patriotic texts, advertisements, instruction manuals, financial statements, candy wrappers, and other random bits. The papers are layered, stitched, and peeled back to reveal different surprises within the layers. The paper is a stand-in for an abstract idea of the collective knowledge of all human beings throughout time and our efforts to make sense of the world and communicate it to others. Information is selectively hidden or revealed as it is in our daily discourse, within the different media we consume.

Here’s the full piece.

disruption, 55 x 98 inches. Stitched textile, acrylic paint, found papers. ©2014 Deidre Adams

March 2nd, 2017|Art, Fiber / mixed media|Comments Off

A New Spin: Fiber arts at the Art Gym

Encoding: Scheme I, 58 x 56 inches, acrylic paint on stitched textile, ©2015 Deidre Adams

July 7–30, 2016
Opening reception: July 14 5-8 pm

1460 Leyden St, Denver, CO 80220
Hours: Tues-Sat | 9am – 6pm

Art Gym Denver is excited to present A New Spin, a fiber arts exhibition curated by Jo Fitsell. A self-taught artist, Jo Fitsell’s work explores internal rhythms and unseen connections. In this show, Fitsell connects a wide range of works related to the fiber medium and modern innovations in fiber art. A New Spin features artwork from Deidre Adams, Christi Beckman, Susan Brooks, Heather Doyle Maier, Patty Emmons, Jo Fitsell, Pam Fortner, Mary Horrocks, Tom Lundberg, Barb Olson, and Jennifer Pettus. According to Jo Fitsell, “I tried to remember pieces visually, without thinking of the artists themselves. I chose pieces that connected on a personal level that would be intriguing to the general public. We have a history of idealizing art from the far past and diminishing those of the present. This was an opportunity to reveal what is happening in the fiber art world.”

Art Gym Denver is a membership-based community and creative workspace with shared access to tools and equipment for a variety of artistic disciplines including painting, printmaking, sculpting, design, culinary arts, dance, and more. It includes a gallery space with new shows opening every few weeks.

In association with A New Spin, there will be several events of interest:
July 7, 2016, 5-8 pm: Exhibition Opens

July 14, 2016, 5-8 pm: Artists Reception | Artists will be present, light refreshments and hors d’oeuvres served

July 16, 2016, 3-5 pm: Artist Talk with Mary Horrocks about Rust Printing Technique – free and open to the public

July 20, 2016, 5-7 pm: Artist Talk with Jo Fitsell about Fiber Art History, Techniques and her own Creative Process – free and open to the public

July 27, 2016, 5-7 pm: Artist Talk with Thomas Lundberg about his Stitch Techniques and Inspiration taken from the History of Textiles and from Everyday Life.

July 2nd, 2016|Exhibitions, Fiber / mixed media|Comments Off