ARTIST STATEMENT
I draw pictures, print impressions, trace marks. I weave images, wind yarns, tie knots. I take daily notes. I observe, I collect, I rearrange. I primarily weave on a floor loom and TC2 Jacquard loom. I’m interested in the texture/color/structure that a line brings to an image. A line has its pre-existing character and materiality, and my job is to discover its assigned role through improvisation and play. The action of time-passing is prominent in my work: the warp and weft threads in weavings mimic the construct of the axis of time and space. The horizontal and vertical lines keep everything in order, but very often there is disorder and chaos within. My images refer to various places: the history of textiles, the language of materials, and diagrams of how-to’s like “how to tie a knot”. I enjoy the idea of the grid paper to provide a place for the process to develop, the action of planning and making in textiles like weaving drafts, knitting diagrams, quilting, and architectural blueprints – referencing something in construction, or the unfinished and will progress in the future.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Xingyi Zhao is a Chinese-born, Chicago-based artist. She draws pictures, prints impressions, traces marks, weaves images, winds yarns, ties knots, and takes daily notes. She observes, collects, and rearranges. She received her BFA and MFA from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago and is a 2022 recipient of the Chicago Artist Coalition SPARKS Grant. She has attended Winter Residency at Penland School of Craft, The Weaving Mill W.A.R.P Residency (Chicago, IL), and Spudnik Press Cooperative Fellowship (Chicago, IL).
© Xingyi Zhao