Joyce Watkins King

May 24 – June 22, 2019

A child of the South and a descendant of Eli Whitney, Joyce Watkins King grew up in a small North Carolina town with a Mom who sewed her clothes as did her mother before her. Learning to sew while she was in middle school was her introduction to soft sculpture, although she did not recognize it as such until she was in design school.

As a lifelong artist and designer, King has in many mediums, but the call of textiles always prevails. Textiles are part of a universal language that cuts across cultures worldwide, providing beauty, utility, creativity, and symbols for special occasions: births, initiations, proms, ordinations, and weddings. Fabric is a metaphor for how many separate strands (fragile threads) can come together to make something strong and lasting.

King strives to re-use thread, fabric, and findings in her work whenever possible, in opposition to the escalating trend of rampant consumption of cheaply made clothes that harm farmers, laborers, and especially the environment.

This exhibit will be in the Jane Sandelin Gallery.