莱镇人文系列之二：Discover Lexington l 作家Anne Lee

编者按

作为美国独立战争的发源地，没有什么地方比小镇莱克星顿更能代表美国的文化与核心价值了。它鼓励创新，拥抱来自世界各地的人以及他们各自独有的文明。在这里无论是谁，来自哪里，都能很快融入，并寻到最适合自己的生活方式，甚至开发出意想不到的价值。“莱镇人文”(Discover Lexington) 旨在将这些人物介绍给大家，讲述魅力小镇的一个个传奇故事。

莱镇人文系列之二介绍本地作家Anne Lee，在莱镇居住了25年。Anne Lee十七岁从瑞士移民到美国求学定居生活，参与社区活动积极融入主流社会。她和Ashley Rooney从相识到相知长达18年深厚的友谊是一个美谈。彼此思想的共通和对写作与艺术的热爱, 使她们在出版界的路上携手同行，互相促进，创作和出版了一系列深受欢迎的艺术丛书。

本期也通过Anne Lee的《纤维艺术》系列丛书, 特别向大家介绍纤维艺术这一种独具审美意蕴的艺术种类。从中了解纤维艺术经历由古老传统文化至现代文化的传承、交融和演化, 同时欣赏艺术家采用多元的纤维材料和运用精湛工艺, 创意别裁，化腐朽为神奇的作品。

作家 Anne Lee

Anne Lee 出生瑞士，十七岁移民美国，精通法语、德语和英语三种语言。她毕业于缅因州的鲍登学院(Bowdoin College)，先后在波士顿艺术博物馆(Museum of Fine Arts) 和Vose Galleries工作。1995年Anne定居莱克星顿小镇，是一位活跃的社区服务者。她与Ashley Rooney在2016年合作出版了第一本书《热蜡绘画》(Encaustic Art in the Twenty-First Century)，从此走上了出版界的道路。

As a means of artistic expression, painting with wax is one of the world's oldest art forms - a means to interpret ideas, convey emotions, and express beauty.

Anne Lee的故事

见到Anne，第一眼注意到的是她的眼睛，娴雅温柔，观之可亲。也许见我穿着单薄，简单的自我介绍之后，她的第一句话就问我冷不冷，要不要加件外衣。我是一路走来的，并不觉得太冷，因为我的注意力和目光全被她脖子上的围巾深深吸引了。这是一件优秀的纤维艺术作品。色彩缤纷，造型活泼，隐约有着印第安艺术的风格。与紫色上衣的搭配和谐时尚，即素雅大气，亦靓丽热情，可谓相得益彰。

纤维艺术和其他艺术一样源远流长，其滥觞可以追溯到夏娃们用树叶编织的衣裙。而无论是海洋文明的男渔女织，游牧文明的男猎女织，还是大陆文明的男耕女织，都令女性成为纤维艺术的主导。纤维是所有文化的共同语言，纤维艺术则代表着连接、温暖、爱与传承。Anne 的书房放着一架纺车，和另一端属于她丈夫收藏的古董照相机遥遥相对。虽然纺车仅仅是一件装饰品，但我依然能感受Anne对纤维艺术的深爱。

由于疫情的原因，我们的访谈在Anne家的后花园进行。随着Anne婉转温和的声音，让我们一起走进她的故事：

Q 1：请您介绍一下自己？

我在瑞士出生并长大。许多人问，我的父母是不是瑞士人，我又是如何去瑞士的。事实上，我的母亲是美国人，父亲是德国人。

我的母亲在美国长大，但一直很向往旅行,我想我就是从她那里继承了这个爱好。母亲在瑞士日内瓦上大学时，在一次约会相亲活动中遇到了刚从德国搬到瑞士的父亲, 剩下的就是历史！婚后不久母亲迁居瑞士，结婚虽然是她当时的期望，但她还想成为一个冒险家，比如搬到一个说一种新的语言的地方！幼年的我住在瑞士法语区的一个小村庄，学会了法语，同时也学习德语并与居住在德国的亲戚们相互交流。而在家里，我们说英语。而事实上，德语一直是我父母亲之间的“秘密”语言，直到我和弟弟的德语知识足够听懂他们在说什么为止。但我们并没有告诉他们！

在成长的过程中，我幸运地得以经常旅行，我的足迹跨越了埃及，远至前苏联。旅行也使我对不同文化产生了兴趣：语言，艺术，饮食，历史，音乐。我们也探访美国的亲人，但我并没有深入地看到了解美国。故此我决定去美国上大学，并就读缅因州的鲍登学院(Bowdoin College)。这是一次文化的冲击，有许多经历我无法与同班同学分享：无论是简单的电视节目或游戏，还是深刻如越战、水门事件等困难时期的生活。我与父母相隔重洋，在没有Iphone的日子里，每个月只能回家一次！不过，我写了很多信，我很喜欢写信。

大学期间，我专注于英语文学，欧洲历史以及艺术史。鲍登(Bowdoin College)学院拥有一座惊人出色的艺术博物馆，关于温斯洛·荷马(Winslow Homer)的绘画藏品丰富得令人难以置信，令我流连忘返。我一直梦想能将自己对写作的兴趣与艺术融为一体，很幸运地在波士顿的Vose画廊得以实现。

Vose画廊建立于1841年，是美国最古老的家族经营型美术馆；它由Vose家族的男人管理了五代，而今，终于迎来了一个能干的女性管理者，也就是画廊创始人的来孙女(第六世孙女)。画廊经营十八到二十世纪初的绘画与纸质作品。在画廊悠长的历史中，Vose售出超过34,000幅绘画，处理了25个艺术家的遗产。我在那里的工作重点是研究寄售或者出售的画作，撰写每一幅画作的历史和相关艺术家，并设计、撰写和制作画展目录。有时候我也会在画廊做一些关于艺术家的演讲，并且为本地媒体撰写有关这些艺术家的文章。我总共出版了20多本目录，包括该画廊出售的25幅最著名的画作的纪念版编目。这25幅画作如今已在世界各地的博物馆中展出。写作最让我喜欢的一点是可以让一位艺术家重新回到我们的生活：Vose Galleries的艺术家已不再与我们一起，有些人甚至不再为人所知，但撰写他们的故事是一种将他们带回并介绍给观众的方式。

Q 2: 能分享一下您的写作经历？

从我很小的时候起，我就编写幻想故事并写诗。我的父亲会说5种语言，能说流利的英语，法语和德语。虽然他养家糊口靠的是商务和营销手册时，他的真爱却是历史。他出版了一些关于德国历史以及一本关于拿破仑三世的书。我在学校任职以及志愿工作中所做的选择，受到父亲的影响及支持。像他一样，我对历史和其它文化也很着迷，但我对艺术有着更浓厚的兴趣。1995年结婚后，我得以继续这些方面的求索（和母亲一样，我在约会相亲活动中遇到了一位历史学家！），期间我们搬到了莱克星顿，并且抚养了两个孩子。虽然我在生了两个男孩（现在他们一个20岁，一个23岁）后没有全职工作，但我的许多活动仍将艺术和写作结合在一起。譬如我为剑桥艺术协会开设并教授关于艺术收藏的课程；我在意大利生活了三个月，通过编辑英语出版物获得了免费上意大利语课的机会；为《今日纤维艺术》，《全国编篮协会》和《花式制被》杂志等杂志撰写艺术家简介等等。最近，我在莱镇图书馆（Cary Library）协助开发和撰写了一个驻留艺术家计划，并最终实现了交互式公众互动。

Q 3：您是如何走上写作道路的? 如何与Ashely合作完成第一本书《热蜡绘画》的？

搬家到莱克星顿之后，我在镇图书馆(Cary Library)的书中得知Ashely Rooney的名字。她的关于艺术家和不同建筑风格的书尤其令我感兴趣。Ashley的职业多彩且迷人，我也想有一天我像她那样。在莱镇教育基金会的拍卖活动和图书馆的艺术品展览中, 我和Ashley成为了朋友，并因着和她一起担任莱镇花园俱乐部联合主席一年，以及我们对金毛猎犬、佳肴美酒、旅行和写作的共同爱好而愈发亲近。Ashley 旺盛的精力、仁慈，以及与各个年龄段人保持联系的能力常使我想起母亲。有时候我称她为“替身母亲”，毕竟我的母亲太遥远了！

当Ashley 着手创作《热蜡绘画》时，她问我是否愿意帮忙。这是一种涉及使用加热的蜂蜡为基础的工艺，古希腊人将之用于木乃伊肖像，如今这种艺术正重新兴起。我加入时，许多艺术家已被入选，在我的协助研究下发掘出更多，其中一位是我莱镇的好朋友。我为书写了一篇关于热蜡绘画的介绍，负责编辑艺术家们提交的文稿，帮助整体设计和排版的布局，并编辑了印刷前的第二个版本。我学习了很多关于出版流程的细节。而我对细节的痴迷也有助于给字母 ‘i' 打上点，给字母’t'划上线。《热蜡绘画》于2016年面世，我和Ashley接受了《牛顿本地访问》电视台的采访。我终于成为了一个“真正的”作家，和我的导师一样在书上印上自己的名字！

热蜡绘画

2016

Encaustic Art in the Twenty-First Century

Ashley手捧着和Anne第一本合作的书《热蜡绘画》，2016

Q 4：您向大家推介《纤维艺术》系列丛书，您最喜欢它什么地方？

第一本《热蜡绘画》成功出版后，出版商席夫出版社的彼得·席夫问我们下一步打算探索什么。我喜欢这三本书，因为它们显示艺术家们令人难以置信的多样性以及创造力。经由技术使用，介质与样式的组合，以及有价值有识见的内容，艺术家们正在拓展纤维艺术的边界。

Q 5: 您有什么故事能与华裔社区的读者分享吗？

纤维艺术之所以如此吸引我，是因为它与“连接”息息相关：无论是字面上的缝，紉、编织，还是它暗含的让人们连在一起获得共同体验的隐喻。这是一个代代相传的传统。当我还是一个婴儿的时候，祖母用钩针勾了一条粉白相间的毯子，无论走到哪里我都带着它，并称之“睡衣”。当它需要清洗时，我会坐在洗衣机旁，而后再走到晾衣绳下等待干燥。当我的第一个儿子出生时，我的母亲给他钩了一条同样的毯子，虽然是蓝白色的。他也称之为“睡衣”，虽然并不知道我也如此称呼我的那一条。而且他也从不让那条毯子离开他的身旁。事实上，他咬毯子咬得太厉害了，现在毯子只剩下一块三英寸的碎屑。我喜欢这种传统的延续！

Anne的社区公益活动

Anne是一位活跃在各类公益活动和社区活动的热心人士。早在孩子们公校读书时，她便参与 Fiske 学校PTA活动，为莱镇教育基金会(LEF)做志愿者。从2001年开始，更致力投身于莱镇的各个社区组织，参与董事会，出谋策划组织管理：

Lexington Historical Society: 2001 - present
Lexington Field and Garden Club, 2013 - present
Cary Memorial Library, Lexington, 2013 - present

听 Ashley 谈 Anne

我与安妮·李（Anne Lee）相遇在18年前，当时她热心为学校的拍卖寻找一些签名书。我们认识后便成为无话不谈的好朋友，与Anne聊天交谈成为我生活中重要的一部分，这样一直持续了好些年。

随着岁月的流逝，我们开始分享更多的东西：关于彼此，关于回忆，对未来的期盼以及对当下的思考。我知道Anne是一位优秀的作家，也是一位艺术爱好者。所以我问她是否愿意帮我一起写《热蜡绘画》（Encaustic Art）这本书，并学习出版一本书的流程及所需的林林总总。当《纤维艺术》系列丛书面世时，她显然已经准备充分，进军出版界。 - Ashley

访谈时，Ashley和Anne不约而同穿着《纤维艺术》的封面色调

《热蜡绘画》Encaustic Art in the Twenty-First Century 是 Anne 和 Ashley 在2016年合作出版的一本艺术书籍。这本书以传统的眼光看待这种复兴流行的艺术形式，收集了北美79位艺术家的倾心之作，探讨了他们对蜡染艺术作品的迷恋和感受，以及他们如何用作品来表达自己的内心世界和周围的世界。使用加热的蜂蜡和树脂材料创作拥有2千多年的历史，从绘画到雕塑，组合，拼贴和版画，应运而生，作品千姿百态令人着迷，热蜡绘画让美得到永恒。

上：Anne and Ashley, 2018

左: Anne at Cape Ann Museum pannel, 2018

右：《热蜡绘画》

Encaustic Art in the Twenty-First Century， 2016

扫二维码｜购买《热蜡绘画》

Encaustic Art

Contact Anne：

[email protected]

关于Artistry in Fiber

什么是纤维艺术？

Artistry in Fiber 是一门美术，主要运用天然或合成纤维的材料，通常将其他材料混合以制成二维和三维艺术作品。重点是艺术家使用多元的纤维材料，开拓新颖的艺术形式和样式，实现现代纤维艺术的功能、实用价值以及美学价值。纤维艺术家运用多种技术，包括缝，打结，缠绕，编结，卷曲和打褶等，创造出各种各样富有表现力的独特作品。

Anne and Ashley at Society of Arts and Crafts, 2017

纤维艺术系列丛书

当代纤维艺术家在各材料中研究探索，无论它们是天然纤维还是合成纤维，是传统材料或各种意想不到的新材料。他们将不同的纤维技术组合成一个整体，推进工艺发展，在不同材料介质中进行异花授粉。他们用纤维艺术来探讨社会，政治，经济以及环境问题。

在这些趋势的激励下，Anne向Schiffer Publishing提议，由Ashley和Anne合作编撰一本关于当代纤维艺术的书。《纤维艺术》系列丛书包括了三本书：壁画艺术，雕塑和可穿戴艺术。

系列丛书重新审视当代纤维艺术家诠释本世纪生活时展现的奇妙又深刻的方式，从现代艺术视角的各个方面来审视纤维艺术。书中一共包含了1，500幅照片、以及来自近250位当代艺术家们的介绍和陈述，收集了将近500位艺术家的纤维艺术作品，其中也包括了来自美洲，欧洲，澳大利亚，非洲和亚洲的艺术家的纤维作品。

Artistry in Fiber VOL. 1 - Wall Art

Artistry in Fiber VOL. 2 -Sculpture

Artistry in Fiber VOL. 3 Wearble Art

Artistry in Fiber

扫描二维码Amazon购买

联系 Anne Lee

[email protected]

Anne Lee Publications

Artistry in Fiber：Wall Art，2017

Artistry in Fiber：Sculpture，2017

Artistry in Fiber：Wearable Art，2017

Six artist profiles：2016-2019

Published in Fiber Arts Now and National

Basketry Association magazines

Blog at Fiber Arts Now：2020

上下滑动阅读英文版

Anne Lee's Story - English Version

Foreword

Nowhere in the United States better represents American culture and core values than the Town of Lexington. It encourages creativity and embraces people from all over the world with their diverse yet unique cultures. No matter who they are or where they come from, people can quickly integrate into the community and find their ideal lifestyle. Some of them even develop unexpected values. Discover Lexington Series aims to introduce some of Lexington's people and tell the legendary stories of this charming town.

The Discover Lexington series 2 introduces local writer Anne Lee, a 25 years resident. Anne Lee immigrated from Switzerland to the United States at the age of 17 to study and settle in the United States. She participated in community activities and actively integrated into the mainstream society. She and Ashley Rooney, profiled in the last issue, have had a deep friendship that has lasted 18 years. Their common thoughts of each other and love of writing and art enabled them to walk hand in hand on the road of publishing, promote each other, and create and publish a series of popular art books.

In this issue, through Anne Lee's "Fiber Art" series of books, we introduce fiber art, an art type with unique aesthetic connotations. Learn about the roots, blending, and evolution of fiber art from ancient traditional culture to modern culture. At the same time, appreciate the artist's use of diverse fiber materials and exquisite craftsmanship, creativity and uniqueness, creating magical works.

作家 Anne Lee

Anne Lee was born in Switzerland and immigrated to the United States at the age of 17. Proficient in French, German and English，she graduated from Bowdoin College in Maine. She worked successively in the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and Vose Galleries. She settled in Lexington in 1995 and is an active community member. In 2016, she published the first book Encaustic Art in cooperation with Ashley Rooney, and has since embarked on the journey of publishing.

As a means of artistic expression, painting with wax is one of the world's oldest art forms - a means to interpret ideas, convey emotions, and express beauty.

Anne Lee's Story

When I saw Anne, the first thing I noticed was her eyes, which were elegant，gentle, and demure; to look at her was to love her. Probably she noticed that I was not wearing much, becase after I introduced myself briefly, she asked: do you feel cold? I have some wraps. I had walked all the way and didn't feel too cold, because my attention and eyes were both attracted by the scarf around her neck, an excellent work of fiber art. Colorful, with lively modeling, and vaguely with the style of Indian art. The match with her purple blouse is harmonious and fashionable, simple and elegant, but also beautiful and enthusiastic, complementing each other.

Working with fiber - cotton, wool, string, rope - has a long history and is a common language in all cultures. It represent connection, warmth, love and inheritance. Women in domestic settings traditionally were the ones creating works in fiber and in the 1960s transformed it into a form of artistic expresstion.

There is an old spinning wheel in Anne's living room facing away from her husband's antique camera collection at the other end. Although the spinning wheel is just an ornament, I can still feel Anne's deep love for fiber art.

Due to the pandemic, our interview was conducted in the back garden. With Anne's gentle voice, let us walk into her story together:

Q 1：Please instroduce yourself？

I was born and raised in Switzerland, and many people ask how I ended up there and if I have Swiss parents. I don't; my mother is American and my father was German.

My mother grew up in America but always wanted to travel - I think I got that love from her! - and spent a year during college in Geneva, Switzerland. There, on a blind date, she met my father who had recently moved there from Germany - and the rest is history! My mother moved to Switzerland right after getting married - and while getting married was what she was expected to do at that time, she at least wanted to be an adventure by moving somewhere where she barely spoke the language! I lived in a small village in the French-speaking part of the country so I learned to speak French as well as German to communicate with my relatives living in Germany. At home we spoke English. (My parents used German as their 'secret' language until my brother and I learned enough to understand them - but we didn't tell them that!).

I was fortunate to travel a great deal growing up, from Egypt to the then-USSR, and I think through that developed an interest in other cultures: the language, art, food, history, music. Though we visited my American family I had not seen much of the United States so decided to go to college here, to Bowdoin College in the state of Maine. It was a bit of a culture shock, as there were many experiences I hadn't shared with my fellow classmates: things as light as TV game shows or as profound as living during the Vietnam War, Watergate, and other difficult times. I was also far away from my parents and in those pre-iPhone days, only called home once a month! I did write lots of letters, though, which I loved to do.

During college I focused on English literature, European history, and the history of art. Bowdoin had a terrific art museum with an incredible collection of paintings by Winslow Homer, and I spent many hours there. I decided I really wanted to combine my interest in writing with art, and was fortunate to be able to do so at Vose Galleries in Boston. Established in 1841, this is the oldest family-run art gallery in the country; for five generations it was managed by Vose men, and now - finally! - the gallery is in the capable hands of the founder's great-great-great granddaughter!

The gallery handles 18th, 19th and early 20th century paintings and works on paper, and in its long history, has sold over 34,000 paintings and handled 25 artist's estates. My main focus there was to research paintings we received on consignment or through sale, write about the painting's history and the artist, and design, write, and produce exhibition catalogues. I also gave talks on some of the artists in the gallery and wrote about them for local media. In all I published over 20 catalogues including a commemorative edition of 25 of the most famous paintings sold by the gallery and now in museums worldwide. What I loved most about writing was bringing an artist to life: the artists at Vose Galleries were not with us any longer, and some had slipped into obscurity; writing their stories was a way to bring them back and introduce them to a whole new audience.

Q 2: Could you please share your journey on publication?

From the time I was little, I created fanciful stories and wrote poems. My father, who spoke 5 languages, wrote fluently in English, French, and German. While his bread-and-butter was developing business and marketing manuals, his true love was history. He published a few books about German history and one about Napoleon III. My choices in college, as a career, and through volunteer work were certainly initially influenced by him and by his support. Like him, I had a fascination with history and other cultures, to which I added my own interest in art. I continued exploring those areas after I married in 1995 (to a historian whom I met on a blind date, just like my mother!), moved to Lexington, and raised two children. Though I didn't hold a full-time job after having my boys - now 20 and 23 - many of my activities still combined art and writing. For example, I created and taught a class on art collecting for the Cambridge Art Association. I spent three months living in Italy and was able to take free classes in Italian by editing English-language publications. I wrote artist profiles published in Fiber Arts Now, National Basketry Association and Quilting magazines. And most recently, I helped develop and write about an Artist-in-Residence program at Cary Library, culminating in an interactive public installation.

Q 3：How did you get on the journey as a writer? How did Ashley and you collaborate to put the first book Encaustic Art together?

When I moved to Lexington, I first learned of Ashley as a name on books in Cary Library. Her books on artists and on different styles of architecture especially interested me, I thought she had such a varied and fascinating career! And I thought, "I would love to do just that!" I finally met Ashley when I asked her to donate a few books to a silent auction I was working on for the Lexington Education Foundation and shortly after that, she asked me to help develop an art exhibition and sale at the library - and again, I was able to write about artists, living ones this time! Ashley and I became friends and saw more of each other through the Garden Club ( I served as Co-President with her for a year and we are both in the same sub-group), and through our love of Golden Retrievers, good food and wine, travel, and writing. Ashley reminds me so much of my mother with her energy, graciousness, ability to connect with people of all ages. I sometimes call her my Substitute Mother since mine is far away!

Ashley asked me to help her with a book she was writing on encaustic, a hot-wax based process that has been around since the ancient Greeks used it on mummy portraits on wood, and which is enjoying a resurgence of interest. Many of the artists had already been chosen for inclusion in the book, but I assisted with researching and identifying more - including a good friend of mine in Lexington. I also wrote an introduction on encaustic, edited artists' submissions, helped with the overall design and layout, and edited the penultimate version before printing. I learned a great deal about the publishing process and the fact that I tend to have an obsessive attention to detail was helpful in dotting the 'i's and crossing the 't's. The book came out in 2015 and Ashley and I were interviewed for Newton Local Access TV. I was finally a "real" writer with my name on a book, just like my mentor!

Q 4：You are instoducing Artistry in Fiber to us, what do you like the most about this book?

After the success of the encaustic book, the publisher, Peter Schiffer of Schiffer Publications, asked what we would like to explore next. I love all three books, as they show the incredible diversity and creativity of these artists. They are pushing the boundaries of fiber art in their use of techniques, in combining mediums and styles, and in having something valuable and insightful to say.

Q 5: Any story of yours you would like to share with our readers in Chinese Community?

Fiber art appeals to me so much because it's about connections - literally stitching, quilting, sewing, and knitting pieces or threads together, but also in the metaphorical sense, binding people together for a shared experience. It's a tradition that is also often passed down through generations. When I was a baby, my grandmother crocheted me a pink-and-white blanket that I carried around everywhere. I called it nightie-nightie. When it came time to wash it, I would sit watching the washing machine and then go outside under the line to wait for it to dry. When my first son was born, my mother crocheted him the same blanket - though blue-and-white. He also called it nightie - without knowing it was my name for it too! And he never let it leave his side. In fact, he chewed on it so much all that was left was a three-inch scrap. I love how this tradition continued!

Anne's activities in Lexington

Anne is an enthusiastic person active in various charity activities and community activities. As early as when her children were studying in the school, she participated in the PTA activities of Fiske School and volunteered for the Lexington Education Foundation (LEF). Since 2001, she has devoted herself to various community organizations in Lexington, participated in the board of directors, planed and organized events:

Lexington Historical Society: 2001 - present
Lexington Field and Garden Club, 2013 - present
Cary Memorial Library, Lexington, 2013 - presen

Friendship - from Ashley

I met Anne Lee about 18 years ago when she was looking for some signed books for a school auction. This continued for several years, and our conversations became important points in my day.

As the years passed, we began sharing more about ourselves, our memories, our hopes for the future, our reflections on the present. I knew she was a good writer and a lover of art so I asked her if she wanted to help on the Encaustic book and learn what it took to publish a book. By the time the Fiber Art series came on the scene, she was certainly prepared to take on the publishing world.

- Ashley

Ashley and Anne at Anne's home

Encaustic Art in the Twenty-First Century is an art book published jointly by Anne and Ashley in 2016. This book treats this revival of a popular art form from a traditional perspective. It collects the works of 79 North American artists and explores their fascination with and feelings about encaustic, and how they use their works to express their inner world and the world around them. The use of heated beeswax and resin materials for creation has a history of more than 2,000 years. Today's artists use it in painting, sculpture, collage, and printmaking, creating works of eternal beauty.

Encaustic Art

2016

Encaustic Art in the twenty-first century

Ashley and Anne co-author their first book Encaustic Art，2016

About Artistry in Fiber

Fiber art is a fine art whose primary material consists of natural or synthetic fiber, often mixed other components to create two- and three-dimensional pieces. The focus is on materials and manual labor used by the artist, and on aesthetic value over utility. Fiber artists use a number of techniques including quilting, knotting, twining, plaiting, coiling, and pleating to create a wide variety of expressive and unique pieces.

Anne and Ashley at Society of Arts and Crafts, 2017

Fiber artists today explore a multitude of materials, natural and synthetic, traditional and unexpected. They combine different fiber techniques together in a single piece, push technical processes, and cross-pollinate mediums. They explore social, political, economic, and environmental issues.

Excited by these trends, I suggested to Schiffer Publishing that Ashley and I compile a book on contemporary fiber art. Artistry in Fiber includes three books: Wall Art, Sculpture, and Wearable Art.

Artistry in Fiber re-examines the wonderful and profound way contemporary fiber artists interpret life in this century. The three volumes ended up consisting of more than 1,500 photographs and personal statements from almost 250 of today's established and emerging artists, colleciting the fiber arts of almost 500 artists from the Americas, Europe, Australia, Africa, and Asia.

Artistry in Fiber VOL. 1 - Wall Art

Artistry in Fiber VOL. 2 -Sculpture

Artistry in Fiber VOL. 3 Wearble Art

Artistry in Fiber

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contact Anne Lee

[email protected]

Scroll to read Anne Lee's story in English

往期精彩

｜莱镇人文首篇: 作家Ashley Rooney

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