Sheila Hicks

Because RISD trains artists in textile and fiber art and design, the Museum tries to acquire recent and contemporary work for their inspiration. Thanks to a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts and to generous gifts from artists, a small collection has been formed over the last 30 years. The Museum usually adds one or more significant examples each year.

Sheila Hicks is one of the most famous of American fiber artists, indeed one of the founders of the movement. This piece is the sole work by her in the collection to date, thus it fills an important gap. The artist made "ropes" of linen threads, then sewed or "couched" them to a linen backing, a time-honored technique. Hicks here shows how contemporary artists are inspired by historical practices to come up with new ways of making art for today.