Saturday, March 18, 2023

Alison Altafi: Reverie
Everson Museum of Art

Everson Museum of Art
401 Harrison St., Syracuse

Alison Altafi is a self-taught fiber artist based in Syracuse. She explores fibers in unexpected ways, creating weavings-in-the-round that appear to be portals to other worlds. Their magical, otherworldly, textured, and fantastical abstract surfaces could be microcosms for the universe.

Altafi's unique process involves transforming metal frames into looms, which she then weaves onto. Unlike traditional weaving, where the tapestry is removed from the loom upon completion, with Altafi's process, the loom becomes a part of the internal structure of the work, providing both a frame and a structure. She uses the loom like a canvas, and the yarn becomes her paint.

For Altafi, the weaving process is just as important as the final work. It functions as a form of escapism, and is cathartic and meditative.