Karen Selk
Textile Artist
Artist Statement
Amid the chaos and darkness, the world revolves and the seasons change always bringing Spring with its light, colour, texture and hope. I grow vegetables and flowers and gather seeds to renew the cycle every year. This rhythm is comforting in its consistency but full of unpredictability and mystery. It strongly shapes how I regard our role in the cosmos and therefore my work.
I use silk, dyes from plants and insects, and my photographs to pay tribute to the beauty and wonder that surrounds us in the natural world of plants and animals as well as the unique creations people have made by hand. The temperament of my tools is not exact, creating blurred images and ragged edges, much like nature and the state of humankind.
Lac, a dye from Asian insect
Produces bright red
Annato seeds - Produces golden orange
Indigo paste from leaves
Produces many shades of blue