Chris Roberts-Antieau is an American fiber artist based in Michigan. She characterizes her work as "fabric paintings," composed ofappliqué and embroidery. She also draws, paints, and produces mixed-media work.
Early life and Career
Chris Roberts-Antieau was born in 1950 in Brighton, Michigan. She was creative from a young age, but was introduced to her primary medium of sewing in a high school home economics class. Following a non-recommendation for college from a high school counselor, as well being told by an art teacher, "you'll never be an artist," Roberts-Antieau continued to create art on a self-taught basis. Chris entered her first art fair in the 1980s where she sold her first piece, a 3-D soft sculpture, for $20. Chris continued to make fabric works, focusing on clothing, finding success and national representation at the American Craft Council fair in Baltimore, Maryland. A friend suggested presenting her appliqué works in a frame, which became the primary work she produces to this day.
Style
Roberts-Antieau describes her work as "fabric paintings." They are appliqué and embroidery tapestries displayed in a wooden frame. She also works in mixed-media projects, such as her "Murder Houses," which are repurposed dollhouses depicting famous murder scenes, or her "Tragic Snowglobes," depicting tragic scenes in the traditionally joyful setting of a snowglobe. Her work is largely characterized by humor, joy, and whimsical commentary, but following a bout with breast cancer in 2009, much of her work "pushed deeper into a place of introspection, addressing themes of personal mortality and interconnectedness."
Galleries
Roberts-Antieau owns three galleries in which she displays her own work. She opened her first gallery in 2010 in New Orleans, Louisiana. After participating in the New Orleans Jazz Fest, Roberts-Antieau and her assistant found a spacefor rent in the French Quarter, where they opened a month-long pop-up gallery. Following a successful month, the space was made permanent. She has since opened a second gallery in New Orleans and a third in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Filmography
A Love Letterto Tom Waits: The Life of Chris Roberts-Antieau - A documentary about the life and work of Roberts-Antieau.
Publications
Sew Far: The Fantastic, Incredible and Amazing Life and Work of Chris Roberts-Antieau
