"it's a party" Solo show by Becca Van K September 26 - October 4, 2020
"My artistic spirit is committed to tenderness, reverence, generosity, and humor. I make a diverse range of objects, which includes needlepoint landscapes, fake plant sculptures, textile-covered furniture, handmade rugs, and upcycled textile collage. My practice focuses on, but is not exclusive to, the techniques of needlepoint, latch hook rug making, and macramé, which are still largely overlooked in the fine art world. Few combine the set of techniques I use, and they are a map of my self-taught and mother-taught experiences. I take pride in the time-consuming nature of this work, and aim to create pieces that subvert conventional ideas about the function of handcrafts. I feel spiritual satisfaction in the act of repetitive handcraft as an act of meditation and creativity. My work draws from the natural world, 80s/90s aesthetics, house/techno music, and comforting objects. My practice is highly sensory, and listening exclusively to house and techno mixes when working puts me in a repetitious, meditative rhythm through which I transcribe my sensorial experiences of touch, sound, and sight. I exhibit my work in various forms, with a passion for immersive tactile installations of my soft sculpture, furniture, and wall works. Prior to COVID-19, these installations were touchable. I am adapting to new methods of connection with my viewers through “work from home” remote soft sculpture workshops with my community members, though I am still struggling to figure out ways to maintain my ethos when my viewers can’t physically engage with my work."
Becca Van K (b. 1991, Chicago, IL) is a mixed media fiber artist based in Catskill, NY. She translates her deepest passions into vibrant colors & pattern combinations with various handcraft and fiber art methods. Her work has most recently been exhibited at HiLo (Catskill, NY), Collar Works (Troy, NY), Sou’wester Lodge (Seaview, WA), Geoffrey Young Gallery (Great Barrington, MA), and Hastings College (Hastings, NE). She is a recent recipient of the NYFA “Keep NYS Creating” Grant. Torn between city nightlife and the woods of the Catskill Mountains, she’d only leave New York if there were techno clubs in the desert. The happiness of her viewers is at the center of her practice.