Among the impressive works of art displayed in the Alder Grove
Gallery at the brand new Aberdeen Art Center at 200 West
Market Street, two unusual pieces of fiber art by local artist
Arlene Eubanks stand out. They are the works of an extraordinary weaver,
but they are more than just weavings.
These works are sculptures, showcasing natural objects woven into
basketry shapes with aesthetic rather than utilitarian purpose.
One is driftwood basket that was a nominee for Martha Stewart American Made Awards. The second is a Black Baleen Bamboo basket, sheltering a silver shell pendent. Baleen is six foot long sheet from a whales mouth. Arlene who creates these works of art is a fiber artist born in Lake Wilderness near Seattle.
Arlene talks about a happy childhood, growing up in nature. “I was always making things”, she remembers. Married to Aberdeen broadcaster Bob Eubanks, they raised five children before she embarked on an artistic career. During the past twenty years basketry trends have evolved into The National Basketry Organization, and the Fiber Arts Now Organization. Both organizations have been instrumental in revitalizing the traditional movement, a number of designers have studied weaving and transitioned from basketry to fiber sculpture. Arlene is very much a part of this movement.
As part of her training she took classes at the Pacific Northwest Art School on Whidbey Island. From 1982-1984 Arlene studied at the Basketry School in Seattle. In 1989 Twelve of her pieces were chosen for the Washington State Centennial Exhibition at the Ocean Shores Convention Center. She has exhibited in coastal galleries in Oregon and Washington. In 2014 she was honored with a Martha Stewart nomination. Arlene continued her education studying art and design with Eric Sandgren at Grays Harbor College from 1999 to 2002. After her husbands death in 2007 she enrolled in digital design program at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh, where she studied until 2009.
In 2010 she opened her business, a fiber arts studio named Artistry in Fiber. Arlene loves the Pacific Northwest, and finds the greatest beauty in the natural world where artists see the radiance and virtue that is promised to future generations. I have been a fiber artist and designer for over fifty years, my work is biophilic meaning that my designs connect people with nature in the interior and the exterior of their homes and workplaces.
You can see more of Arlene’s work on the Art Gallery of Facebook. Weavers Around the World, The National Basketry Organizations Membership Page.
The University of Kentucky in Bowling Green in the Garden Gallery 2019.
The National Basketry Organization travel exhibit”More to Consider II”
The Art Drives Studio Tour 2019
Grays Harbor College Gala 2019