Beatriz Herce-Hagiwara

Untitled
java project, yarn
33 x 26 x 2.5 in.

Over the past three years I have split my academic attention equally between the fine arts and computer science. As a result, my work explores methodical and often mathematical processes used to approach abstraction.

Through fiber I have discovered that I am able to allow my process to be ruled by numbers and equations to achieve products that do not appear to follow the implied rigidity of their process. As such I have discovered complex systems that do not make themselves known when looking at a final object. Contradictorily, I have found that fiber is also one of the most literal translations of process to final form. The stitches and seams of a textile tell a story of the hands that made them.

In utilizing known methods associated with fiber (knitting, crochet, sewing, etc.) to create unrecognizable forms, I attempt to make clear the mathematical methodology that has always gone into fiber art and bring attention to the meticulous beauty of any given textile; an heirloom quilt, crocheted lace doilies, medieval tapestries, even a hand-knit sweater. By creating forms that both acknowledge and separate themselves from the historical medium they are created with, I intend to bring to attention the work that has been accomplished and unnoticed by generations of “crafts-people” (typically women) who ought to have been called artists in their own right.

© Beatriz Herce-Hagiwara