Recent work by Baxter Koziol and Karen Koziol that is embroidered, embellished, hand sewn or machine stitched.
Baxter, a recent graduate of Maine College of Art, stitches cast off clothing into dolls, suits installations and paintings. Constructed with his rudimentary hand sewing techniques, the very visible stitching is as much about holding things together as it is urgent mark making. The collection of fifty dolls are made up of found items wrapped in fabrics and embellished with stitching, wire and paint. Similar yet different, they have that “collect them all” aspect found in action figures. Using his own body as a dress form, the pieces he calls “skin suits” are sewn and fitted onto his body, cut off and restitched for display.
Karen, Baxter’s mother is primarily known as an assemblage/collage artist. Her strong connection to fiber arts and the desire to find a new direction in her work was the impetus to explore the idea of merging fiber techniques and found objects. Some of these recent assemblages are complimented by a bit of cross stitch, crocheted wire or thread drawing. The fabric collages utilize found imagery embroidered on repurposed/scrap fabrics in keeping with her penchant for old and worn materials.
