How a therapy conversation became fiber art…

One of the unexpected joys of working with felt, found objects, and reclaimed materials is that they often begin speaking long before I know what they want to become. A rusted piece of metal, a discarded trophy or a tuft of wool carries traces of previous lives. Through needle felting, wet felting and assemblage, I become less interested in restoring these objects than in transforming their stories.

Several works in my Curious Maximalist exhibition at Little Bites Gallery in Santa Fe grew from this process of gathering overlooked objects and allowing them to evolve through making.

Among them is a small series built around vintage trophies.

The Story Behind the Trophies

The idea emerged during a conversation with my therapist about internal versus external validation. We talked about how easily I can become trapped by external measures of success…a gallery acceptance, an award, positive feedback, a social media post that performs well, a new opportunity.

She reminded me that nearly all of us have been conditioned to seek external validation from childhood onward.

Gold stars.
Grades.
Trophies.
“Good job!”
Acceptance letters.
Promotions.
Likes.
Awards.

These things aren’t inherently bad. They are part of life, and they can be deeply meaningful. But when they become the only way we measure our worth, we give away something important.

What if our internal voice celebrated us with equal enthusiasm?

That question stayed with me long after our conversation ended.

Working with Found Objects

I love searching family collections, thrift stores, estate sales, eBay, and flea markets for materials. I’m drawn to objects that have already lived a life before finding mine.

Vintage trophies immediately captured my attention because they represent achievement—but only one kind of achievement.

By combining these found objects with hand-felted wool, vintage findings, reclaimed textiles, and hand stitching, I wanted to shift their meaning. Instead of celebrating public accomplishments, these sculptures recognize quieter victories that rarely receive applause.

Holding boundaries.

Making it through grief.

Continuing to create despite doubt.

Resting when rest is needed.

Showing up again after disappointment.

These are victories too.

Felting as a Practice of Transformation

Felting has always felt like the perfect medium for these ideas.

Unlike many sculptural materials, wool is remarkably forgiving. It can be built up, compressed, softened, pierced, stitched, reshaped, and repaired. Through repeated handling, loose fibers become something unexpectedly strong.

That transformation mirrors the emotional work these pieces reference.

Each sculpture combines wet-felted wool and found objects to create forms that balance softness with permanence. The contrast between warm, tactile fiber and cold manufactured objects creates a dialogue between vulnerability and achievement, process and outcome, internal experience and public recognition.

Curiousity as Maximalism as Curiosity

Throughout the Curious Maximalist exhibition, I invite visitors to notice the relationships between materials and concepts.

The exhibition includes felted wall sculptures, fiber assemblages, wearable works, and found-object sculptures, each built through layering, collecting, and intuitive composition. Many incorporate reclaimed materials gathered throughout Northern New Mexico alongside inherited objects and vintage curiosities.

Although the materials vary, they ask similar questions:

• What do we choose to carry?
• What deserves preserving?
• What stories can ordinary objects continue telling?
• What if our smallest personal victories were worthy of celebration?

An Award Worth Giving

This particular trophy became my own award for simply holding it together during difficult seasons.

Not because everything went perfectly.

Not because every application was accepted.

Not because every goal was reached.

But because I kept going.

If you’ve been carrying invisible weight, navigating uncertainty, caring for others, rebuilding after loss, or quietly doing the work no one else sees, perhaps you deserve an award too.

Maybe the most meaningful recognition isn’t the one someone else hands us.

Maybe it’s the one we finally learn to give ourselves.

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Visit Curious Maximalist

Curious Maximalist is a solo exhibition of hand-felted sculpture, found-object assemblage, and fiber art exploring transformation, memory, curiosity, and ecological making. The exhibition is on view at Little Bites Gallery 805 Early Street in Santa Fe.

If you’re in Northern New Mexico, I hope you’ll stop by, spend time with the work, and perhaps discover a few unexpected treasures of your own.