About the Artist
Jill teaches about unusual natural materials and creative practices in her own studio workshops, and at Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado. She is a member of the Women's Environmental Artist Directory, and has exhibitions and outreach programs with communities affected by environmental issues. Jill has shown her work internationally, and her work is in private, corporate, and museum collections. Her work won Best of Show in the Millennium Show at the American Museum of Papermaking in Atlanta. Jill has been interviewed about her passion for the natural world and her environmental art. Read an interview with Jill and writer Annie Waterman from HandEye Magazine. Read the article about Jill's recent work in Fiber Art Now. ________________________________________________________________________________ "As a child I was drawn to to the wildness in the natural world, and became a rapt observer. Approaching the art world through this window led me to experiences with elemental materials and processes, direct from their sources in the earth. The unique qualities, and deep presence of the material infuses my art and the questions I ask of it." "As a teacher, I seek to inspire an experimental and investigative journey, learning from the materials and our deep human experiences to honor insights and discoveries that reach to the core of what matters. Somatic contemplative practices help to access our body’s aesthetic intelligence, and build the capacity to sustain genuine artistic engagement."
EDUCATION M.ED Tyler School of Art -Fibers, Philadelphia, PA 1986 Studies at the following institutions: Pyramid Atlantic, Prints and Paperworks, Silver Spring, MD 1981-89 Carriage House Paper, New York NY University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA Penland School, NC Basketry Focus, British Columbia Study with the following artists: Dorothy Gill Barnes Pat Hickman Lillian Elliott Helen Frederick Lynn Forgash Elaine Koretsky
TEACHING
University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 1986
Foundation Grad/undergraduate course in art education
Penn State University, State College, PA 2000
Zen Mind/Zen Art: Papermaking and Bookbinding
Pendle Hill, National Quaker Study and Retreat Center , Retreats
Art and Spirituality Series, Wallingford, PA 1995-1999
Naropa University, Extended Studies - Retreats and workshops Boulder, CO 2000- 2005
Brushes with the Spirit, Ancient Origins- Elemental Painting, Art of the Earth, Creating Books: Containers for the Sacred, Our Wild Nature- Art and Creation
Naropa University - Visual Arts Faculty 2007 to the present
3D Design w/Ephemeral Media, Eco- Art, Book Arts, Mixed Media, Eco Art
Numerous workshops and retreats in settings local and national
TEACHING University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 1986 Penn State University, State College, PA 2000 Pendle Hill, National Quaker Study and Retreat Center , Retreats Wallingford, PA 1995-1999 Naropa University, Extended Studies - Retreats and workshops Boulder, CO 2000- 2005 Naropa University - Visual Arts Faculty 2007 to the present Eco Art, 3D Design w/Ephemeral Media, Book Arts, Mixed Media Numerous workshops and retreats in local and national settings
PUBLICATIONS, BOOKS, AWARDS International Fiber Biennial, Invitational, Snyderman Gallery, 2012, 2010 500 Paper Objects, 2013, Lark Books 500 Baskets, 2006 Lark Books Fiber Art Now magazine, feature article, 2012 Hand Eye Magazine, feature on-line article, 2012 Fiberarts Magazine, Article on Silkworm Chambers, Spring 2011 Authentic Visual Voices: Contemporary Paper and Encaustic, by Catherine Nash, published May 2013, selected work included American Style magazine, Feature, Winter 2010 The Crafts Report, Insight Feature Artist, Feb 2003 Fiberarts Design Book VII, 2004 Best in Show, Fiber Celebrated, 2005 Best of Show, Paper in the Millennium, 2000 American Museum of Papermaking, Atlanta, GA NY Times, Sunday July 15, 1990 Review by Betty Freudenheim of work in Fiber As Art, juried by Lewis Knauss
COLLECTIONS American Museum of Papermaking, Atlanta GA Sara and David Lieberman Contemporary Craft Collection Kamm Collection- Contemporary Non ceramic Teapots Stratus Consulting, Boulder Colorado
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS Natural History Museum, Trees and Insects in a Time of Change CU Boulder, 2013 Washi and Other Ephemera, Durango Art Center, Durango, CO August 2013 Colorado Fiber Art, Foothills Art Center, Golden, CO June 2013 Terraphilia Artist Residency, Salida, Colorado 2013 The Art and Soul of Paper, Norwich, Kew Gardens, UK 2013 Plants and Insects in a Time of Change, Firehouse Art Center, Longmont CO 2013 Fiber Art Now magazine, feature article, 2012 THe Morgan Conservatory IAPMA Conference, Watermarks Exhibition, Cleveland, OH 2012 Fiber Biennial, Snyderman Gallery, Philadelphia 2012 Hand Eye Magazine, feature on-line article, 2012 FiberArts Magazine- Feature Article: Chambers of Silk, Spring 2011 Jane Sauer Gallery, Santa Fe, NM 2011 Lincoln Gallery, Naropa University, CO 2011 Fiber Biennial, Snyderman Gallery, Philadelphia 2010 The Paper Runway The Robert C Williams American Museum of Papermaking 2010 Houston Center for Contemporary Craft 2010 Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes, Santiago Chile 2010 SOFA Chicago- Sculptural Objects and Functional Art, 2009 Snyderman Gallery Nalanda Gallery, Naropa University, CO 2009 Material Differences, Arkansas Valley Arts, Buena Vista, CO 2009 Contemporary Baskets Exhibition, Thirteen Moons Gallery, Santa Fe, NM 2008 Off the Wall, Translation Gallery, Denver 2007 The Teapot Redefined, Mobelia Gallery, Cambridge MA 2007 Mystery Contained: Contemporary Sculptural Basketry, Craft Alliance Gallery St. Louis, MO 2007 Curator: Kate Anderson Beyond the Basket: Contemporary Work in Fiber, Metal & Wood, del Mano Gallery Los Angeles, CA 2007 SOFA Chicago, Del Mano Gallery, Mobelia Gallery, 2006 National Paper Juried Exhibition, Canal Warehouse, Chillicothe, Ohio 2006 Basketry International, The Dairy Barn Arts Center, 2006 Nat'l Basketry Org, Jurors: Jerry Bleem, JoAnn Kelly Catso Colorado's Small Stitches - Beads and Thread, Tointon Gallery, Greeley, CO 2007 Selected Works, Del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles,CA 2007 Contemporary Baskets 2006, Del Mano Gallery, June 2006 Plane and Form, Contemporary Handmade Paper, Minnesota Center for the Book Arts, 2006 SOFA Chicago, Del Mano Gallery-Los Angeles, CA October, 2005 All Things Considered III, Biennial, National Basketry Organization North Tahoe Arts Gallery, Lake Tahoe, CA 2005 Fiber Directions 2005, Juror: Jason Pollen, Kansas City Art Institute Wichita Center for the Arts, Wichita, Kansas 2005 Crafts National 39, Juror: Jean McLaughlin, Penland School of Crafts Zoller Gallery, State College, PA 2005 Fiber Celebrated 2005, Juror: Linda Ligon, Interweave Press Intermountain Weavers, Durango, CO 2005 The Southwest School of Art and Craft, National Paper Exhibition, San Antonio Central Library, San Antonio, TX 2004 Explore Paper, Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design, Denver CO 2004 Landmarks,The Landmark Center, Minneapolis, MN 2003 Sensory Experiments, Loveland Museum, Loveland, CO 2003 Paper as Art, Curtis Arts and Humanities Center, Denver, CO 2003 Art on and of Handmade Paper, Hoffman Gallery, Oregon College of Art and Craft, Portland, OR 2002 Paper in the Millennium, Robert C. Williams American Museum of Papermaking, Atlanta GA, 2000 LINKS Snyderman Gallery, Philadelphia, PA Jane Sauer Gallery, Santa Fe, NM Narional Papermakers Organization- The Friends of Dard Hunter |
Jill Powers creates environmental art and mixed media fiber art with unusual natural materials. Her primary material is Kozo, a tough inner bark, sustainably grown, which she laboriously cooks, opens, casts, paints, and stitches into abstract sculptures or installation pieces.