WILTON, CONN.- browngrotta arts is presenting their Spring 2022 Art in the Barn exhibition, Crowdsourcing the Collective: a survey of textile and mixed media art, May 7-15. Featuring 40+ artists from 13 countries, the exhibition illustrate the vitality of art textiles, ceramics and mixed media. The growing prominence of these art forms finds them the subject of exhibitions in major museums alongside paintings and traditional sculpture in ways unthinkable a decade ago. The journey of the artists in this exhibition tells us much about where craft and fiber art are now and how they got here. Some of the artists began working during craft and fiber art's less popular period in the 1980s and 1990s, while some have been working since fiber art’s heyday in the 1970s. Their education, experience and inspiration vary. They differ in material and approach. They come from more than a dozen countries around the world and the influence of those places is often evident in their work.

“There have been so many changes in the last few years -- new ways of working, new worldwide worries, new ways of responding to anxiety, new acceptance of viewing and acquiring art online. We decided to lean into this turbulence, asking our artists to help us curate Crowdsourcing the Collective, an exhibition that reflects where craft and fiber art are now, with reference to how they got here.” - Rhonda Brown, browngrotta arts

The work in this exhibition reflects an impressive range of materials and techniques: tapestries of silk and agave, sculptures of seaweed, seagrass and willow, wall works made of sandpaper, hemp and horsehair, and ceramics of Shigaraki clay. The scope of these artists’ preoccupations are also on view — from environmental concerns, to questions of the cosmos and identity, to explorations of material and process. It includes new work, work from earlier periods and work from artists invited specifically for this exhibition.

Adela Akers (US), Caroline Bartlett (UK), Polly Barton (US), James Bassler (US), Nancy Moore Bess (US), Marian Bijlenga (NL), Pat Campbell (US), Lia Cook (US), Włodzimierz Cygan (PL), Neha Puri Dhir (IN), Chris Drury (UK), Shoko Fukuda (JP), Kiyomi Iwata (US), Stéphanie Jacques (BE), Marianne Kemp (NL), Lewis Knauss (US), Naomi Kobayashi (JP), Nancy Koenigsberg (US), Yasuhisa Kohyama (JP), Gyöngy Laky (US), Sue Lawty (UK), Jeannet Leendertse (US), Dawn MacNutt (CA), Rachel Max (UK), John McQueen (US), Mary Merkel-Hess (US), Norma Minkowitz (US), Laura Foster Nicholson (US), Eduardo Portillo & Mariá Eugenia Dávila (VE), Lija Rage (LV), Heidrun Schimmel (DE), Hisako Sekijima (JP), Karyl Sisson (US), Jin-Sook So (SE/KR), Polly Adams Sutton (US), Chiyoko Tanaka (JP), Blair Tate (US), Wendy Wahl (US), Gizella K Warburton (UK), Chang Yeonsoon (KR), Shin Young-ok (KR), Carolina Yrarrázaval (CL).

For the month of May, browngrotta arts philanthropy initiative “Art for a Cause” will benefit Sunflower of Peace, a non-profit group that provides medical and humanitarian aid for paramedics and doctors in areas that are affected by the violence in Ukraine. browngrotta arts will donate a portion of profits and match donations collected during the exhibition).

For over 30 years, browngrotta arts has been advancing the field of contemporary fiber arts by curating and exhibiting renowned contemporary artists who celebrate the exploration of fiber art techniques and drive the unique possibilities of soft materials. Representing many of the artists who have helped define modern fiber art since the 1950s, browngrotta arts reflects the cultivated eye and intellect of its directors, husband and wife team, Tom Grotta and Rhonda Brown.

Founded in 1987 in Wilton, Connecticut, browngrotta arts showcases unique sculptural and mixed media works with an emphasis on concept, supported by technique. The focus of the work is on the materials and the technical mastery of the artist as intrinsic to the significance of the work, prioritizing aesthetic value over utility. Museum-quality artworks by more than 100 international artists are represented through art catalogs, art fairs, co-partnered exhibits at museums, retail spaces, and an online gallery.

The founders open their private home - a two-story barn built in 1895 expanded and contemporized by architect David Ling in 2000 - for “Art in the Barn”, a unique annual salon-style exhibition. Over 3500-square feet of space with a viewing vista of 55’ allows for experiencing works that reflect complex illusionary space. The 21’ high ceilings permit the installation of tall sculptures and two free-standing walls enable dramatically shaped fiber structures best hung off the wall. The living environment also grants the artwork to be shown in situ. browngrotta arts has published 50 art catalogs and placed works in private and corporate collections in the US and abroad, including the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Arts and Design, Art Institute of Chicago, Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian Museum. They also regularly work with architects and interior designers offering consultation for commissioned artworks and site-specific installation for commercial and residential spaces.