Mindy Airhart

Mindy Airhart is a Western New York fiber artist and printmaker. As a child, she learned traditional woman’s handwork, developing a skillset in embroidery, needlework and fine sewing. She has also trained as a printmaker; she studied at Houghton College, where she graduated with a B.A. in Art in 1999. As an artist, Airhart finds “nothing is more intriguing to me than words, fiber and thread all mixed together into artwork.”[1] She seeks to combine assorted elements from both of her technical backgrounds to express ideas in new and interesting ways. She explains this notion further in her artist statement:

“I am intrigued with the idea of the quotidian – the ordinary – and how it can become extraordinary through the creative touch of the artist. Bits of thread, pieces of paper, wool from sheep, printmakers ink: mixed together they can become anything but ordinary. Antique fabrics provide newly fertile ground for expression via words and embroidery.

My current work tries to pull the viewer in for some very tiny details. Thousands of words are stitched and often overlapped to keep my meanings quiet. Like ancient manuscripts on vellum, here’s no punctuation in these calligraphic lines. There’s just something about those threads that loosens my tongue.”[2]

Airhart has exhibited regionally at the Buffalo Arts Studio, Houghton College, and with the Western New York Artist Group, among others. She has also exhibited with the Wellsville Art Association, where she has won several awards.

For more information on her work, visit www.mindyairhart.com