Lately, I’ve been observing other contemporary rug hooking artists explore and respond to the question: “How do I make the artistry of rug hooking visible?” Some artists, such as Michelle Sirois-Silver and Karen Miller, choose technical innovation or blow-up to garner attention. Deanne Fitzpatrick colourfully stylizes a regional geography. Laura Kinney uses simplified primitivism, but her ironic take on Maud Lewis seizes attention.
Toronto’s Textile Museum of Canada has toured its Home Economics show of hooked rugs, relying on social craft history as its focus. One group established a Contemporary Rug Hooking Group on Facebook last year, whilst another on Instagram instituted a weekly focus on individual artists. More traditionally, guilds or local groups of rug hookers frequently take on community projects, presenting the final collaborative rug to organizations for display or fundraising. For instance, in St. Andrews, New Brunswick, the Quoddy Loopers have collectively completed many rugs, so that every public building seems to have its own hooked rug commemorating the centrality of handicraft to the region.
While all of these approaches tell stories in which the artistry of hooked rugs is remarkable and visible, it seems to me that Alexandrya Eaton’s approach is unique.
Alexandrya Eaton
