Nicole Donnely
Artist Statement
I received my early artistic training in my country of origin, Spain, and it consisted of extensive sketching and drawing. Upon moving to the US in my late teens, my focus shifted to fiber arts, and later, printmaking and digital painting/collage. In the last few years I have also become interested in papermaking both for its inherent ability to carry imagery, as well as for its textural and dimensional potential. My current body of work comprises a combination of those disciplines. It reflects a strong affinity for drawing, textile patterning, ornamentation, print processes, and a fiber sensibility.
My visual vocabulary includes motifs that reference struggle, renewal, joy, and a fascination with beauty, biology, myth, and belief. My working method entails the physical handling of multiple visual elements or components, which can then be assembled into different combinations for what will later become a group of related pieces. This allows for experimentation and play. It is precisely via the layering of loaded icons and motifs that I impart meaning to my pieces, as their presence and interaction with each other coalesce into implied narratives in the eye of the viewer.
Ana Fernandez
Ana Fernandez is an artist currently based in the US and Spain. She was born in Madrid and obtained undergraduate degrees in Fine Arts (Printmaking and Fibers) and Japanese Language and Literature from the University of Washington, along with a MFA degree from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She has worked at the University of Michigan as the Print Media Coordinator at the School of Art, and as faculty teaching drawing and printmaking courses at the Residential College.
She has participated in group and solo exhibitions in the US and abroad, including Japan, Cuba, Scotland, Italy, France and Spain. Her artwork includes elements of printmaking, painting, drawing, fibers, and digital collage. It reflects a tactile sensibility and an affinity for layering, patterning and ornamentation. Thematically, it focuses on the interaction between fashion, representations of the female body, and notions of femininity.