Heather Kerley

About the Artist

For 13 years, I have been a full-time painter, mixed media, and fiber artist. From 2009-2011 I lived and exhibited my work around the Washington D.C. area and was a 2011 visiting artist at the Torpedo Factory Art Center in Alexandria, Virginia. From 2012-2019, I lived in Ramstein, Germany where I collaborated with German artists and continued to produce and show work, including a Dada-inspired embroidery installation. Currently, I live in Baltimore, Maryland.    

Artist's Statement

For the past few years, freestyle hoop art has been central to my artistic practice. I make unusual, abstract embroideries using found fabric, primarily vintage kimono silk scraps. Every work is improvisational, with designs “riffing” on and transforming the existing cloth pattern and using an eclectic mix of different yarns, flosses, beads, and an array of different stitches. I also create embroideries stitched on top of transfer images of mixed media collages. I have recently begun studying quilts and quilt-making in an effort to expand my fiber art practice.