crystal gregory
Held-Autumn Stripes, 2018
32 x 30 inches
handwoven textile cast in concrete.
Statement
If the nature of architecture is fixed and permanent then the opposite would be a textile, collapsible and movable. Further consideration, however, would show more common links than difference. Both mediums define space, give shelter and privacy. A textile however has the advantage of flexibility. It is a semi two dimensional plane that has the ability to fold, drape move and change to its surroundings. It is pliable. My work uses cloth construction as a fundamental center, a place to start from and move back to. With a background in weaving, I see myself as a builder. I draw a clear connection between the lines of thread laid perpendicularly through a warp and the construction of architectural spaces. Formally, my work takes shape through a pallet of building materials either paired with or mimicking handmade textiles. I find a wonderful tension between building materials like concrete, metal, drywall and the structural patterns of cloth. By pairing these seemingly opposite worlds together I invert material stereotypes, using the ‘delicate’ material to exhibit strength or exposing the ‘structural’ materials’ instabilities. These gestures allow for a reinterpretation of material identities and the viewer is left to confront their understanding of these everyday utilities.
CRYSTAL GREGORY
Assistant Professor,
University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY
Crystal Gregory is a sculptor whose work investigates textile structure through a variety of materials. Gregory Her work has been exhibited in museums and galleries nationally including Through the Thread at Rockwell Museum of Art and Crossover at Black and White Project Space and has been reviewed in publications such as Hyperallergic, Art Critical, and Surface Design Journal. Gregory is the Assistant Professor in Fiber within the School of Arts and Visual Studies at the University of Kentucky. Gregory currently shows with Tappan Collective in Los Angeles, CA as well as Momentum Gallery in Asheville, NC.