Agusta Agustsson creates fiber art by printing all of her textiles and then stitching heavily, always with a story to tell. Her work has evolved from being inwardly reflective to being focused on the outside world now. Her current series highlight environmental issues and women’s reproductive rights.
How did you find yourself on an artist’s path? Always there? Lightbulb moment? Dragged kicking and screaming? Evolving?
I can’t really remember a time when I wasn’t making something. My mother went to art school, although she quit painting when she had children, she did do a lot of sewing. I was her seam ripper. My dad brought home stationary from the hospital, so there was always a supply of paper. I did briefly think I should learn something practical. A few weeks of secretarial school disabused me of that notion. Upon quitting, I immediately applied to art school.
Why textiles? How does that medium best express what you want to communicate through your art?
My mom made a lot of our clothes, so sewing was always in the background. I loved walking down the aisles of the fabric store running my fingers over the fabric. In the seventies, as a senior at Mass Art, I decided I wanted to create a 3D landscape quilt of my memories. The painting department had an expansive view of painting so I was able to find a mentor who would support my work as an independent study project. I joined a sewing group of other female artists who sewed various things. We egged each other on to experiment.
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It was at this time that I created “Blanket of Red Flowers” which made it into the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts in 2017. It was a heady time for women in the arts. Many of us found our voices using textiles. It seemed like we were free to make anything.
What do you do differently? What is your signature that makes your work stand out as yours?
I also began printmaking as a senior at Mass Art. I belonged to a collective, The Graphic Workshop, that specialized in making silkscreen posters of endangered species. Printmaking was entirely separate from my fiber work.
It wasn’t till much later, after 22 years as an art teacher, that I returned to textiles. My dad had just died and I needed to make something tactile and comforting. I loved playing around with patterns and colors, but the work somehow wasn’t fully mine. I took a workshop where we were supposed to make 100 drawings in six days. It was a super intuitive approach to art making. Dean Nimmer, the instructor, suggested I make my own fabric. At first, I dismissed the idea, thinking too narrowly about creating yardage, Suddenly a light bulb went off and I realized I could make any size piece of fabric by using simple printing techniques.
The printing is what people see first, but I also stitch heavily into the fabric using my machine. It is like drawing into the fabric.
Do you do series work? How does that affect your approach?
I do work in series. Partly that’s because I will print up a bunch of fabric at once, but mostly because one idea can take many paths and I like to explore until I think I have taken the idea as far as I can at that point.
I will have several pieces going at the same time in various stages. The pieces talk to each other and tell me where to go.
When it comes to creating, are you more of a planner or an improviser?
I used to be a planner, but I found if I knew where I was going there didn’t seem to be a burning reason to finish. Now I have some general ideas, but I allow the piece to lead me to the conclusion.
How do you manage your creative time? Do you schedule start and stop times? Or work only when inspired?
I try to do some work most days of the week. Quilting takes the most sustained and concentrated effort. Printing requires breaks so things can dry. My studio is in my home so I don’t have to go anywhere. Actually my “studio” sometimes takes over most of the house.
Are you a “finisher”? How many UFOs do you think you have?
I do finish most things, but sometimes I go up a wrong path and a piece is beyond redemption. Sometimes life gets in the way and when I come back to a piece, I have no idea what I was thinking. Sometimes a UFO will become something else.
Describe your creative space.
I have a sewing studio where I have 3 machines set up. One, my Juki, is basically for quilting. I have an old Bernina and an inexpensive Janome. There are two drawing tables where I make collages, and cut stencils, a cutting table, a design wall and an ironing board. I have work by other artists on the walls. Every place I can possibly store stuff is jammed full.
My dining room serves as both a cutting space and a basting space. The living room is a viewing area.
In my basement I have a printing area that I share with stuff my husband and son are storing. I have clothes lines for drying. A six foot table holds my Gelli plate and stencils. Various art supplies are scattered throughout the studio. It used to be my puppet workshop.
Do you use a sketchbook or journal? How does that help your work develop?
I don’t have a formal sketchbook. When I print I have to clean the plate a lot. I reuse the clean up paper so I end up with complex, layered papers perfect for collage. When I am unsure what do next I play around with these papers.
How often do you start a new project? Do you work actively on more than one project at a time?
I work in series so I am usually working on several pieces at once. I was finishing about 2 series a year, but in 2023, I was creating an installation printing on paper. The idea of translucency is still something I’m playing around with mostly with small pieces. I’d like to combine the imagery from my kelp forest installation by printing kelp onto organza. I try to have something unfinished to work on at all times.
Can you tell us about the inspiration and process of one of your works? How does a new work come about?
Right now there are two strands to my work. One is focused on the environment and the other is women’s reproductive rights.
A lot of my environmental work involves the ocean. I live on the east coast not far from the ocean and am from an island nation. Plastic plays a dual polluting role in our environment. First it is collecting in our oceans, killing wildlife and creating islands of plastic garbage. Micro-plastics can be found on the highest peaks and the deepest ocean depths. Also, plastics are created from fossil fuels, so both their creation and their disposal create a global challenge.
I had been printing fabrics with plant life. I realized I wanted to say something about the danger to our oceans. One way to do that was to use plastic detritus to print with. I didn’t want to make ugly images that would repulse people. The first step was to draw the viewer in with a beautiful image. Only gradually would the viewer realize that the image was built from plastic bags, bottles and straws. Just as using plastics is seductive because of the apparent ease, I wanted my images to seduce the viewer.
Which part of the design process is your favorite? Which part is a challenge for you?
I love the design process. Everything is new. There are ideas to hash out. The biggest challenge is probably choosing which idea will yield the best possibilities.
How does your formal art education help your work develop? Does it ever get in the way?
It has been a long time since art school so mostly the good habits are left. Questioning why. Looking and looking again. Discussing ideas with other artists. Seeking out work in the flesh, so to speak.
How does your environment influence your creativity?
One can’t help but be influenced by ones’ environment. Some materials come directly from the world around me. Politics, worries and hope they all feed into idea generation. Long solitary walks help me process.
How is your work different than it was in the beginning? How is it the same?
My work from the seventies was more inward reflecting. Now I am more focused on the outside world.
What do you do to keep yourself motivated and interested in your work?
Sometimes I am not really sure what to do. The thing is just to do something. The materials will eventually lead you down an interesting path. You just need to stay open.
How do you know when a piece or project is finished and needs no additional work?
I think that is often a function of experience. There are tricks such as taking a black and white picture to see if there are any serious value mishaps. Putting the work aside and looking at it afresh can also help. There is always that time when you add something and go, “Oh, no.” But you need to take risks and not play it safe. Every work may not be a masterpiece, but every work can teach you something.
Where can people see your work?
Mostly my work is online at my website, pinkgoosetextiles.com or on Instagram under my name, Agusta Agustsson. I also have work on Artsy.com. My women’s right project is on sew4rights.org.
I have a solo show once every 2 years at Galatea Fine Art in Boston’s SOWA district. I am in many fiber shows locally and occasionally nationally through SAQA or SDA. Right now I have a piece in the winter edition of Fiber Art Now.
Interview published March 2024
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