Charlotte Bird
Artist Statement
Grass splitting a stone on the upper Teklanika River bar, a Parisian iron utility hole cover, the shingle-like cap of a mushroom in a boreal forest, white spatter under an owl’s nightly perch on a street made shiny by morning fog. Roald Dahl said, “And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it.”
When I walk, I look down. When I find magic things I try to make them mine, both in images and with study. My current work connects 50 years of hiking, canoeing and living in wilderness cabins to my fascination with how art and science relate, and particularly the effects of climate change on the natural world.
I have been creating textile-based artwork for over 30 years, exploring a variety of visual forms. Time, process and change are persistent themes. I dye and print the majority of the fabrics I use. I often produce small pieces of cotton fabric in unusual, experimental patterns and color combinations with no particular direction in mind. Those patterns, shapes, colors and textures I see when I travel both in urban and wilderness settings help make my voice unique.