Artist Hillary Fayle fuses delicate plant life with elegant embroidery to explore our connection with the physical world. Using green leaves, dried petals, and seed pods, she die-cuts intricate patterns and sews designs into them. “By combining these organic objects with the rich traditions of needlecraft,” she writes in her artist statement, “I bind nature and the human touch.” Citing that both parties display opposing characteristics of tenderness and ruthlessness, her intricate stitching is symbolic of our complex and fragile relationship with planet Earth.
Many of Fayle’s embroidered designs have a cyclical element to them. She uses looped thread to attach individual pieces, and she also creates small rounded motifs that span part of their forms. This decision is intimately tied to the artist’s inner self. “The way I think about and make art mirrors the way I think about my life and how I walk through the world,” she explains. “It’s about seeing things and considering their connection to you, their potential futures and possible pasts. Invisible narratives are woven into and around each piece, each interaction.” Thread is a vessel to describe what is often left unsaid.
