Wednesday, July 13, 2016

Art? Or Craft?

Angela Teng, Jump Start, 2016. Crocheted acrylic paint on aluminum panel, 24 x 18 in.
Angela Teng is one of fifteen finalists in the RBC Canadian Painting Competition. Her work explores the relationship between art and craft, which I always find interesting. Prize winners will be announced September 20, 2016.

To quote from the magazine Canadian Art

"Angela Teng has gained attention in the Canadian art realm—and should garner yet more—for her unique approach to the materials and practices of painting. Most notably, Teng crochets “canvases” out of strings of dried paint, inverting expectations around fine art and fine craft. Based in Vancouver, Teng was born in Victoria in 1979 and studied art at Camosun College and Emily Carr University, graduating from the latter in 2011. She is due to have a solo show at Vancouver’s Equinox Gallery later this year, and she has also exhibited at Mixed Greens in New York and Wil Aballe Art Projects in Vancouver, among other venues."
Now, if Teng had used yarn in the same way, and applied it to an aluminum panel, would it still be considered fine art? Is there something inherently superior about using paint for the crocheted rectangle? Intriguing questions are raised by this "painting", don't you think?

1 comment:

Margaret said...

Intriguing. As a knitter, I'm wondering how she managed to get strings of dried acrylic paint long enough to work with, to get 'em crocheted in the first place!