Artist: Ingrid Lincoln of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Interview 86: Ingrid exhibited in two 2012 Festival Oakville exhibitions: De rerum natura (On The Nature of Things) at Joshua Creek Heritage Art Centre and Continuum at Oakville Towne Hall.
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Interviews published by Gareth Bate & Dawne Rudman.
Biography
Ingrid Lincoln is a textile artist who is interested in colour and texture on fabric. She was born in Germany and immigrated to the United States as a child. Ingrid holds a B.A. in English and German from Montclair State University, New Jersey and a LL.B from the University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba. She spent twenty years working in the legal profession. For the past fifteen years Ingrid has been a practicing textile artist. She holds certificates in Design and Embroidery from the City & Guilds of London Institute and continues her B.A. (Hon.) studies in Embroidered Textiles with Middlesex University, London, England, graduating in June 2012. She has exhibited throughout Canada, the United States, and Europe.
Ingrid is married with two children and lives in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.For examples of recent work, please visit Ingrid's website.
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Artist: Ingrid Lincoln. |
Tell us about your work?
My work is eclectic. I am interested in the nature of the materials and I like to combine different materials with textiles. For example, I have worked with resins, ice, metal, corn silk. The work has also tended to move towards a more sculptural expression. Yet at the same time I am still interested in the stitch, both hand and machine, and I continue to make colourful textural wall pieces. Adding colour to fabric through dyes, paints and thread is a major part of my practice.
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Danger Water Rising, cotton, silk , batik , machine stitch |
From where do you get your inspiration?
My inspiration can come from almost anywhere: the light on the edge of a table, the feel of a fabric, the smell of a certain flower. I also sometimes work towards a certain theme. In that case I will research the subject matter and wait for that particular spark which interests me. For an exhibition at the Whyte Museum in Banff, I was inspired by the little black dresses worn by the ladies of the mountains and produced work in response.
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Detail: Danger Water Rising, cotton, silk , batik , machine stitch |
Why did you choose to go into fibre art?
I like to say that fibre art chose me. For me it started as a pastime. Eventually as I took courses and finally formal studies in the area, I realized its potential. I am drawn to the wide variety of modes of expression available in this medium. It can be personal or architectural. Although the work is not always understood by the audience, it has a dedicated following. I find that working with the fluidity of textiles is satisfying.
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Either/Or cotton batik, machine stitch |
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Detail: Either/Or cotton batik, machine stitch |
Which is your favourite fibre medium?
I like the manipulation of fabric either through stitch or the addition of a stiffening agent of some kind. I also like to dye fabric and to stitch it. I cannot say I have an outright favourite. Different mediums interest me for different projects and different effects.
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Escape from The Little Black Dress, silk, discharge, machine and hand stirch |
What other mediums do you work in, and how does this inform your fibre work?
I have worked with wax for some time. Initially the wax was used just as a resist in batik and dyeing processes. Lately I have started to experiment a bit with encaustic. I find that adding fabric to the encaustic canvas and panel provides additional texture for this highly textured medium. I also paint and sketch but these works are only for inspiration for further textile pieces.
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Place: a perfect landscape, silk fabric, resin |
What bridges the works that you have created in differing media?
I am always looking for that special play of colour, the unusual texture and especially the play of light over the surface.
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Detail: Place: a perfect landscape, silk fabric, resin |
What specific historic artists have influenced your work?
Eva Hesse (American 1936-1970) Perhaps we can place Hesse into the historical as she has been a major force on textile arts. She led the way in the idea that we could use a variety of materials to create an art object and used these materials in a textile manner. I have been especially influenced by her ability to capture light as evidenced in such pieces as “Right After”.
Robert Morris (American 1931- ) Again not sure we can place Morris into the historical context but he has been moved into the category of contemporary artists who have demonstrated longevity and influenced art theory. I have been drawn to his theoretical writings and particularly his idea that there should be some spontaneity or serendipity in art making.
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Detail: Place: a perfect landscape, silk fabric, resin |
What specific contemporary artists have influenced your work?
Lynda Benglis (American 1941- ) Benglis is an artist who uses latex and other materials to create sculpture. These sculptures are often poured and allowed to find their own form. I admire her use of bright colour even dipping into the neon range and sparkle in her work. Her work is wide ranging and she works in a variety of mediums including video.
Rachel Whiteread (British 1963 - ) Whiteread works in cast forms often using resin as a material. I admire her ability to use this industrial material in a context that is both beautiful and challenging to the viewer.
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Detail: Place: a perfect landscape, silk fabric, resin |
What other fibre artists are you interested in?
Dorothy Caldwell (Canadian) I admire her use of line and space in her work.
Alice Kettle (British) Her ability with the machine-stitched line is outstanding.
Magdalena Abakanowicz (Polish) I admire the scale of her work and the variety in a long artistic career.
Audrey Walker (British) I admire her ability to use stitch with realism and portraiture.
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Deconstrcted Cords, machine made cords, ice, digital print |
What role do you think fibre art plays in contemporary art?
Since Duchamp, the artist can determine what art is. This has opened up the entire art world to a wide variety of expression. Fibre has been a recipient of this idea that art can encompass many forms. Artists are increasingly moving from one genre to another and many are incorporating fibre or fibre-like techniques into their work. Yet there remains the other part of the Duchampian equation. The artist makes the work but the audience has to accept the validity of that expression. I think fibre still has a way to go here. There is still an association with the domestic, the feminine and craft. Unfortunately these three ideas are not given high status in society generally, or in the fine art world. Yet fibre has a definite place and that influence is growing.
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Deconstrcted Cords II, machine made cords, ice, digital print |
Can you talk a bit about the commercial viability of fibre art and do you find it more difficult to show and sell your work than non-fibre artists?
I think artists generally are having difficulty selling and showing their work. I think to some extent this is a supply and demand situation. There are more artists producing work now than at any other time in history. There are just not enough buyers or collectors out there to accommodate all this production.
For the fibre world I believe there are too few galleries that understand and promote the work. Also the public does not gravitate to fibre. Art is still the painting to hang on the wall. This, of course, is a generalization as there are pockets of fibre work that do well and have a collector base. In North America quilting has accomplished this to some extent.
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Algae, silk ,machine stitched |
When did you first discover your creative talents?
I think I have always been creative. When I wasn’t making art I was looking at it in galleries and purchasing other artists` work. During my professional career I felt the need to do something with my hands. I rediscovered fibre. I grew up in a household where sewing was a part of life. I just needed to find the time and inclination to take these skills into a form of self-expression.
Where did you train and how did your training influence your art?
I hold certificates from City and Guilds of London in design and embroidery. This is a four-year program and is technique based. This course increased my design skills and introduced me to the wide range of skills in the embroidery world.
In June 2012, I graduated with a B.A. (Hons) Embroidered Textiles, Middlesex University, London, U.K. This was a six year course. This course added the academic to the mix. I became more aware of the context in which textile art was produced, its history and its underlying concepts. This course allowed me to work with tutors who were established in the field and to exchange ideas about my work with them.
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The Hood, Mixed media collage |
Please explain how you developed your own style.
My style is still developing. I think you develop your style by working, reading, looking and reassessing.
How does your early work differ from what you are doing now?
My early work tended to be more image based. I have moved away from this to a more sculptural, abstract based work. Also my earlier work was more technique based. Now I tend to use less rather that more on most pieces. This does depend on what the piece is about and what I think will best suit it. I have a wide arsenal of possibilities at my disposal and tend to use them all from time to time.
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Cape d`or, Machine stitched, cotton. silk metal |
Tell us about your studio and how you work:
I have two studios. My home studio has a wet studio in the basement. I live in a 100-year old house, so the basement is high and gives me lots of room to be messy. Upstairs I have two rooms dedicated to cutting and stitching. I also have a studio at a collective downtown. This allows me to work on even larger pieces and gives me an avenue to display my work to the public on a continual basis.
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Ingrid in the studio. |
Where do you imagine your work in five years?
I hope to continue making work that evolves and becomes known to the wider public. I have some recognition in my local community and to some extent in Western Canada. I am hoping to become more widely known in Eastern Canada and in the USA. I am not sure how or to what extent I will be involved with the European scene, but connections are developing there. The main focus is to keep working and to keep growing.
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If Jackson Pollock had a Little Black Dress, cotton , machine stitched |
What interests you about the World of Threads festival?
I have followed this festival for some time. I had a piece accepted into the Oakville’s Common Thread Exhibition as early as 2005. I believe this was the forerunner of the present festival. I like that the festival has grown and that it has expanded its mandate to include a wider variety of work in the genre.
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Detail: Study in Blue, cotton applique, hand and machine stitched |
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Interviews published by Gareth Bate & Dawne Rudman.