Lissa Hunter is an American artist, whose work includes basketry, drawing and mixed materials. Her professional activities include teaching, writing, and a long association with Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Deer Isle, Maine as teacher, student and trustee. Hunter was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, on November 13, 1945 to C. McCord Purdy, salesman and magician, and Ruth Gordon Purdy, secretary and untrained artist. She attended Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana where she studied drawing and painting, attaining the BA degree in 1967, and the MFA degree in Textiles in 1971.
Professional practice
After having taught at Mansfield State College in Mansfield, Pennsylvania from 1971 to 1978, Hunter left Pennsylvania to work as a full-time artist, living in South Berwick, Maine. At the time, she was weaving tapestries but was soon drawn to the burgeoning fields of papermaking and basketry. It was at this time that she developed her own technique of applying paper to her coiled baskets as well as making collages of painted and stitched paper and fabric. Hunter continued these two paths after moving to Portland, Maine in 1984. In 1994, she merged the two-dimensional and three-dimensional imagery into wall-mounted sculptures that remain her trademark work. While she continues in this vein, Hunter also explores drawing, painting and printmaking. She also teaches workshops and writes as a complementary part of her professional life.
Process
1980–94 Coiled baskets with paper “skins”, embellished and free-standing. Framed, stitched collages made of paper, fabric and metal. All embellished with painting, mark-making, stamping, embroidery, etc. 1993–95 Merging of two-dimensional and three-dimensional work, resulting in wall-mounted shelves and boxes utilizing the visual concepts of both basketry and collages. 1995–present Continual exploration of the vocabulary of materials and techniques previously developed. Emphasis on ideas to define the images. 2010–present Development of drawing and various drawing media. Back to the "craft" of making, developing a new vocabulary of materials and techniques. Incorporation of drawing into sculptural pieces. Cycles 1981 15" h x 30" w x 1" d Thatch Basket 1984 8" diameter x 15" h Santa Fe Basket 1988 17" diameter x 9 1/4" h Transition 1993 32"h x 26" w x 5" d Botanica 2001 19" h x 31" w x 4" d Tumbled 2010 29" h x 24" w x 3" d Morning Rush 2011 25" h x 49" w x 2" d
Awards and distinctions
Haystack Mountain School of Crafts Trustee, 1995–2004, 2007–present
Residency at A.I.R. Vallauris, Vallauris, France, 2009
Master Craft Artist Award, Maine Crafts Association, 2009
