Adrienne Sloane and Alissa Sorenson, Fiber Artists

Adrienne Sloane

Alissa Sorenson

I want to introduce you to these two fabulous fiber artists Adrienne Sloane ( first 2 pictures) and Alissa Sorenson (second 2 pictures)

Adrienne Sloane is one of seven artists from across the country that will present the age-old arts of knitting, weaving, crochet and basketry in unexpectedly unique and eclectic ways during the “Loose Ends: Contemporary Fiber Arts” exhibit to be held in the Lincoln Center Galleries 417 West Magnolia Fort Collins, CO 80521 from Saturday, Sept. 12, through Oct. 23. Whether made from threads, yarns or even modern plastics and wires, rich, colorful fibers form the core of this exhibit. The art pictured here is a very unique and takes a talented artist with a vision to achieve. I have being seeing some fiber artists doing this sculptural knitting using silk-steel yarns and I am very impressed with their efforts, as this yarn is very difficult to work with. Alissa Sorenson (work pictured above) won Juror’s Choice award and a Greater Columbus Arts Council award, the latter for Hungry, at the Ohio State Fair this year. Alissa Sorenson (work pictured above) won Juror’s Choice award and a Greater Columbus Arts Council award, the latter for Hungry, at the Ohio State Fair this year. Alissa also has a number of stunning fiber sculpture on Flickr as well as her site “Three Faces of Fiber Art” check out this talented Ohio artist.

Adrienne Sloane Artist Statement: Knitting shapes have long been defined by the human form. By moving the context of knitting from clothing geometry to sculpture, knitting becomes a medium with a link to a rich and complex fiber tradition that has the power of history behind it. To be able to turn a single strand of yarn into fiber building blocks with form and function, texture and color is also energizingly low tech. Working in what has long been considered a traditional woman’s medium, I aim to an artistic aesthetic informed by traditional craft, art and politics. My work aspires to dissolve the boundaries between craft and art, mindful of the historical context of the medium. I knit to rejoin the frayed and unraveled places around me.

Alissa Sorenson Artist Statement: My work is a conceptual exploration of the psyche, and the dichotomy of the human condition as beings of energy (spirit) and matter. My process is to use knitting as a metaphor for how we live our lives; each stitch represents a choice – an act – and lays the foundation for creating our futures, both individually and collectively. Education: BA Visual Arts – Studio, University of California, San Diego

Read These Next

Human brains are pretty amazing, allowing us to think, feel, create, communicate, move and more. But humans aren’t the only animals with cool brains, as Crab Museum explains in the book The No-Brainer Brain Explainer (illustrated by Bruno Valasse).

This book, aimed at kids in grades 1-4, is colorful and silly but also educational about how brains actually work, with billions of neurons sending electrical and chemical signals around the body.

“Everything we think, feel and experience comes from an electrical relay race, with neurons passing chemical batons to each other,” the book says. “The constant chatter of billions of brain cells creates your entire world.”

The book compares the brains of mammals to those of crabs (the book is “written” by a crab after all) and notes that crabs have fewer neurons and of course are much smaller, but they have separate parts of their brains that control their eyes and their legs. Crabs are also capable of remembering things, using tools and solving puzzles.

Some animals’ brains allow them to know more about their world in different ways from humans, such as spiders being sensitive to vibrations in their webs and catfish having an amazing sense of taste, with taste sensors all over their bodies.

It notes that 95 percent of brain activity goes toward things we do unconsciously, like breathing, walking and catching a ball flying toward us. It also talks about dreams, memory, how our emotions try to predict the future, where brains came from and fun facts about brains. For example, did you know a sperm whale is believed to have the biggest brain of any creature that’s even lived? Their brains weigh 18 pounds, compared to just 2.5 pounds for humans.

Information on what creatures have the smallest brains, the toughest brains, the most brains and those who actually eat their own brains will delight kids (and maybe gross them out a little bit). They’ll also enjoy learning about the mycelium network of fungi, which is like a brain without a body, and slime molds, which are like a brain without a brain.

It ends talking about why human brains are so special because we’ve found ways to work together, communicate and build communities on a scale bigger than any other animal.

Kids and adults alike will enjoy this colorful, silly and informational book about brains!

About the book: 64 pages, hardcover. Published 2026 by Wide Eyed Editions. Suggested retail price $19.99.

Read These Next

Have you read?