Fiber Optics: A Textile & Fiber Arts Exhibition
August 4-September 12, 2025
In the Exhibition Hall and Atrium
“Fiber Optics” is a curated group exhibition showcasing selected works from regionally based textile and fiber artists working across various techniques and traditions. Curated by Twin Cities textile artists Chiaki O’Brien, Karen Searle, and Sue Swanson, this exhibition will highlight a variety of techniques and approaches to working with textiles and fiber and may include mixed media or unconventional artwork, provided that fiber is the main medium used.
Fiber Optics Community Reception
Tuesday, August 19, 6:00-8:00 PM
Curator talk at 7:00 PM
Event ID: 62021
FREE
Meet the Curators
Chiaki O'Brien is a SAORI Leader Committee Certificate recipient whose journey began in 2001 with a year-long SAORI course in Japan. She then worked at the SAORI Head School in Japan before relocating to Minnesota in 2004.
Once in Minnesota, Chiaki started sowing “SOARI seeds” as the weaving style had yet to take root in the Midwest. She began teaching SAORI wherever possible, at events like Shepherd’s Harvest, the Midwest Weavers Conference, and school residencies. She has witnessed the seeds bloom into a flourishing community.
SAORI has taught Chiaki how to have fun with the weaving process, how to express herself, and that we are all different. “How wonderful it is to use our hands to create things,” she says. “What a joy!”
Today, Chiaki teaches students of all ages and abilities off-site as well as in her home studio in Bloomington, MN. In addition to weaving, she enjoys Bengala mud dying, as well as teaching and performing Japanese Taiko drumming.
Karen Searle creates sculptural works in fiber and mixed media using tools and techniques from domestic crafts historically undervalued as “women’s work.”
She surprises viewers with unexpected uses of non-traditional materials. Her artwork has been exhibited widely in the U.S. and abroad. Her art career has evolved from learning to weave in 1969 to writing and publishing in the craft field, pursuing an MFA degree at MCAD and has included teaching, mentoring, jurying and curating exhibitions, to leading textile tours.
Sue Swanson finds deep satisfaction in creating "circles of beauty and joy." She is the leader of the Fiber Open Studio at WBCA and the founder of Purple Apple Arts, providing people with opportunities to explore traditional and multimedia arts, including beadwork, collage, knitting, crocheting, journal crafting, and surface embellishment.
Sue holds a BA in Professional Communications and a Master of Divinity degree from United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities. Her studies are grounded in traditional techniques and reinterpreting them to resonate in our 21st century lives.