Virginia A. Spiegel


Photo by Nancy J. Spiegel Rosman


Virginia A. Spiegel's artwork is exhibited and held in private and permanent collections in the U.S. and internationally. She also serves as a curator/juror for mixed-media and fiber exhibitions. Her artwork and writing about art, creativity, and her adventures in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness are featured in books and magazines. Her new book is Wild at the Edges: Inspiration from a Creative Life.

Statement

I have circled around the Midwest (living in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Indiana, Iowa, Nebraska, and Illinois) for all but one year of my life. I appreciate the distinctive landscape of the Midwest and am frequently drawn to creating long, horizontal pieces emulating the Midwest horizon line.

The fourteen trips I have taken with my sister in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (a million acres of lakes and forests along the Minnesota/Canadian border) have greatly influenced the direction of my artwork in recent years.

The Boundary Waters series is grounded in specific locations in the wilderness, abstracted and flavored with the emotional content of our journeys.

The underlying themes are complexity built from simplicity, the contrast of an eternal Nature with the brevity of human life, and the endless recycling of organic matter from Death to Life and back again.