
Spotlight Artist
Anna Buckner
Midwest
Artist Statement
Liminality is soft. It is malleable, compliant, acquiescent, and
supple. At its worst, it is impressionable, submissive, gullible, and
feeble. At its best, it yields empathy and patience. I find strength
in liminality—in vulnerability.
My work explores vulnerability through materials. Soft, it exists
somewhere between piecework and painting. I select stretchy
fabrics that have a high potential for change when they are
pulled over a support. In their elasticity, materials such as
Spandex and knits reference skin, and pulling these fabrics over
a support causes them to swell like the body. I piece the fabric
scraps together, forming a quilt top that is then stretched on a
support. The initial design of the piecework is compromised
through stretching, causing the material to warp. The support of
the painting is therefore a tool for transformation, revealing the
potential of the materials and pushing them into roles for which
they are not traditionally used.
The balance of existing in a liminal state is precarious. This
unpredictability creates space for transformation, encouraging
growth and expansion.
Artist's Additional works
Works shared by the artist outside of their featured New American Paintings selections


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