The colours of the work were partly grown in the artist’s garden. The orange comes from the flower Coreopsis and is the central actor among the dyes. Opposite her is a wasabi green which, although not derived from this plant but from indigo and reseda, has inspired root-like forms. The colours line up, overlap and have a tactile quality. Their surfaces are enlivened by the curly wool which drapes around botanical forms and patterns. It is also a fictional map of a field. The felted tarp thus becomes an interface of the field and a camp and creates an intimate space in the display window.
Stefanie Salzmann works in Valais (CH) and Brussels (BE).
Her artistic practice begins with materials and their story, such as her family’s Blacknose sheep wool in Valais (CH), which has become a worthless byproduct of sheep farming. She investigates the materiality and uses it for her tapestries and sculptures. The textiles explore the insulating and protective aspects of felt and speak about touch, the connection between people, the environment and the crafting process. The meaning and rituals established during the process are crucial to her works. Stefanie accompanies the material from animal or plant to sculpture. She undertakes this journey physically and mentally. Physically through her craft learned in residencies and travels in Mexico and Japan and her experience as a fashion designer. On the other hand, mental journeys; through her work, she creates spaces that have an inhabited time of their own and provide shelter. The natural dyes she uses, tell the stories of their existence just like the wool and the works they become. With hands that felt, shape, sew, knot, express and comprehend, she paints intimate textures that seek a relation to the body of the viewer.
