Stacy Isenbarger
Jogged (Megan's Edges), upholstered form, velvet, rock and found charred tree limb, 14" x 15" x 3", 2019
A desire to both hold on to and let go of our past influences—our sense of place, our complex grounding— drives Stacy Isenbarger’s mixed-media practice. As forms seem to pull themselves together or break apart, they act as stand-ins for complex personas confronting their environments. In Jogged (Megan’s Edges), from Isenbarger’s Shed series, material collisions quietly speak to tensions in seeking comfort and attempting to understand one’s own place.
In Isenbarger’s works, material-driven paradoxes both greet and confront the viewer; the tightness in craft makes the tensions within them quickly felt, yet mysteries for us to ponder further. In this way materials contrasts and connections act as clues. From upholstered forms, needle work, and velvet to concrete, tree branches, and rocks, Isenbarger seeks ways to express complex negotiations with our edges—our reaches, our landings, our thresholds, … our sense of home.
In Isenbarger’s works, material-driven paradoxes both greet and confront the viewer; the tightness in craft makes the tensions within them quickly felt, yet mysteries for us to ponder further. In this way materials contrasts and connections act as clues. From upholstered forms, needle work, and velvet to concrete, tree branches, and rocks, Isenbarger seeks ways to express complex negotiations with our edges—our reaches, our landings, our thresholds, … our sense of home.