Marie Bergstedt
Hope Ascending, 2025
Cotton, acrylic and wool yarns, buttons, needlepoint canvas, Eco-felt and wool/rayon felt backing 45" H x 26" W x 1"D
There are times in life for each of us when we cannot seem to map a way forward. Maybe, if we establish an attitude focused on hope, we will discover a pathway. Patient, mindful, and determined, we ascend.
Marie Bergstedt
Under Water, 2024
Buttons, aluminum wire and screen, wool, acryic, and cotton yarns, neelepoint canva, wool/rayon felt 12" x 12" x 12"
Sometimes we feel like we are drowning/suffocated. We are just underwater. Emerge.
Marie Bergstedt
Still Kickin, 2023
Wool, cotton, nylon, artificial sinew, and buttons over needlepoint canvas, manufactured felt backing 46" H x 22"W x 4"D
Continual changes face humans. Some people weave their way triumphantly through, both bearing scars and with a bright star lighting the future into old age. In my experience, a common response of those who are looking forward as they age is, “I’m still kickin’.” In a 2022 visit for a family reunion nobody said this, but there was James literally still kickin’ and enjoying the storytelling. The party, a memorial of the very sad death of James’ son one year earlier, transformed into a time of liveliness, hope and kickin’.
Marie Bergstedt
Coated in COVID, 2023
Cotton threads, wool felt and cotton fabric, nonwoven interfacing 60" H x 36" W x 31"D
"Coated in COVID" addresses a concern and experience for the entire world, with a symbolic wrap to keep everyone warm and safe until the threat subsides. Hand crochet and embroidery flow through much of the garment with interpretations of COVID cells. A diagram of a genetic molecular strand of COVID and a high-definition microscopic image are also included. One underarm displays a list of COVID variants and the other underarm, the titles of vaccine research attempts and failures. A neck scarf denotes treatments for those infected with COVID-19. The back of the jacket reminds us of the four years COVID has been active, with a syringe signaling general availability of vaccines beginning in 2021. All the same, COVID continues to fall down all over the world, with a need to stay safely wrapped for now.
Marie Bergstedt
Dungaree Deviations, 2021
Denim, wool, cotton, buttons, recycled clothing, needlepoint canvas 49"H x 36"W x 3"D
“Dungaree Deviations” casts in stitches, buttons and denim my vision of Jim Arendt, a fiber artist I met in 2013 at a Fiberart International exhibition. We later became friends, although we seldom see each other and live about 3000 miles (4800 km) apart. The friendship is based on our early childhood experiences growing up in the state of Michigan, where we were poor and needed to hold income-earning jobs at ages 9 and 11. Each of us also uses family members and close friends as models to tell more universal stories about our cultural concerns. Arendt's three children dominate a treasured portion of his life and Facebook posts. In this artwork his children are represented by small dungarees, dancing into his brain, so that his ideas can come out in denim.
Marie Bergstedt
Touch the Earth, 2024
Silk and synthetic organza, cotton threads, acrylic and wool yarn, shoelaces, wooden rod 65.5" H x 35" W x3"D
Secretly submerged in the chaos of current events one day, I asked my granddaughter whether there was anything that bothered her. She immediately replied, “What is happening with the environment?” I know she gets some of that from school, but they talk about many other concerns as well. Her greatest fear is the rapid environmental changes she has experienced in just 12 years of life. What future is there for her? This artwork envisions a world where young people can leap across their fractured life experiences and fears into the hands of caring adults who will work with them to attain resilience and fulfillment.
Marie Bergstedt
Gentle Men on the Street, 2020
Cotton, polyester, nylon, eco-felt, reclaimed garment fabric and buttons over needlepoint canvas with wooden stretcher frames. 56"H x 51"W x 4"D
Marie Bergstedt
FIT, 2018
Wool, rayon, cotton, acylic, silk, chenille, and buttons over needlepoint canvas. Wool/rayon felt backing. 58"H x 41"W x 1.5"D
Marie Bergstedt
Love Crosses Borders, 2017
Cotton, wool, silk, acrylic, buttons, beads, needlepoint canvas 60"H x 52"W x 2.5"D
Marie Bergstedt
Terry, 2015
Cotton and waxed linen threads, buttons and beads over needlepoint canvas. Polyester and cotton batting stuffing. Rayon/wool felt and canvas backing. 44"H x 41"W x 2.5"D
