Gabriel Lanza

Region: Midwest

While drawing inspiration from my travels around the world, my interest in folk and textile art offers an aesthetic richness full of colors, narratives, and textures. Challenging the judgment that separates textiles and fine art, my new direction in fibers embraces a technique that is traditionally “craft” and pushed into other disciplines like sewing and quilting. I investigate what the practice means and how it is possible to renew this traditional craft for a contemporary audience, hoping to remove the commercial ambition often associated with rugs or carpets. Regardless of media or artistic discipline, my work is a materialization of my nostalgia for cartoons and toys of the past, blending my own delicate balance of humor, beauty, and awkwardness. As with all my work, I start with simple stories and choose a moment that freezes the dialogue, allowing the viewer to imagine what’s happening before and after.