Personal Information

Leisa Rich is a sculptor and artist who employs fiber, surface design, hand and machine stitching, obtainium and a variety of other unusual techniques and materials in her 2D and 3D constructions and Installations. She is an art educator with 36 years experience teaching all levels, and ages 3 year olds through university in Fibers, Painting/Drawing, Sculpture, Master/Artist Book Making, Basic Printmaking, Clay, Resin/Moulds, Sewing, Encaustic and more. She holds Master of Fine Arts, Bachelor of Fine Arts and Bachelor of Education in Art degrees. Leisa teaches at Callanwolde Fine Arts Center and The Galloway School, in-studio classes and workshops, and at arts centers such as Snow Farm, Peters Valley and Touchstone. Her previous experience includes designer for an international fashion house, projects for television and theatre, a successful wearable art business, Director of an art school and much more.

Artist Statement

My passion is interacting with tactile materials, processes and concepts, artistically reinterpreting the world of today and its limitless possibilities in order to discover new, creative ways for humans to reach out to me- and each other- therefore including all in both the artistic process, and resulting pieces. Fibers are as old as time; used in a modern, conceptual way, they become in my art an exciting metaphor that transcends the physical to entice, draw in and provoke the experiential in my "viewer". Fibers nurture humans. 

Honors/Awards

Leisa exhibits in international and national, curated, juried and solo exhibitions. She is on the Board of Directors and Planning Committee for the new non-profit arts center South East Fiber Arts Alliance, previous State Representative for the Surface Design Association-Georgia, a member of arts organizations, has won several prestigious awards such as bestowments from The Barbara L. Kuhlman Foundation, the Distinguished Juror Award from The University of Texas, Surface Design Association Awards and more. Leisa was recently featured in the books, Noplaceness: Art in the Post-Urban Landscape; The Studio Quilt, No.6: State of the Art; Modern Sculpture; Hand to Hand: 195 Artists Witness the Iraq War; The Best of America Sculpture Artists and Artisans, Volume 1 and Quilt National 2009 Lark Books, filmed by PBS for the series, “inCONTEXT” and featured in Artists to Watch in FiberArts magazine and more.

Her work is in the Dallas Museum of Art, in public collections of The University of North Texas and The University of Texas, in The Kamm Foundation collection and in private collections in the U.S., Canada and Europe.

EDUCATION

2007      Master of Fine Arts in Fibers, The University of North Texas, Denton, Texas

1993      Bachelor of Education in Art, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada

1982      Bachelor of Fine Art in Fibers, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan

SELECTED SOLO/ TWO PERSON EXHIBITIONS

2012   Two person, Connecting the Dots, Spruill Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia

2010   Solo, Inconsistencies: Stitching Past to Present, Fine Arts Blount Space, Maryville, Tennessee

2009   Solo, Beauty From the Beast, Callanwolde Fine Arts Center Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia

2005   Two person, beyond COLOR, The University of North Texas Union Gallery, Denton, Texas           

2001   Solo, Under the Surface- Recent Works by Leisa Rich, Focus Gallery, Irving Arts Center, Irving, Texas        

SELECTED GROUP/INVITATIONAL EXHIBITIONS

2012      Process and Practice, Beep Beep Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia 

             Fibers, madison Morgan Cultural Center Gallery, Madison, Georgia

2011      Volusia Wrapped in Fiber, Gateway Center for the Arts, DeBary, Florida

             Little Things Mean A Lot, Swan Coach House Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia

             Collective Thread, The University of central Missouri, Warrensburg, Missouri

2010      Fiberart International, Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, Pittsburgh,   Pennsylvania

             The Sculpted Wall, The Terminus Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia

2009      National Fiber Directions Exhibition 2009, Wichita Center for the Arts, Wichita, Kansas

             Quilt National 2009, The Dairy Barn, Athens, Ohio

             Spotlight 2009, American Craft Council Exhibition, Kennesaw, Georgia  

2008      AAC Annual National Juried Exhibition, AAC Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia

             Led By Thread, Target Gallery- Torpedo Factory Art Center, Alexandria, Virginia

              Mining the Surface: New Sensibilities in Art Textiles, Swan Coach House Gallery, Atlanta, GA

SELECTED FEATURES- T.V, RADIO, INTERNET

2006/07   PBS, In Context, Featured Artist, Televised Interview

2005       Out of Site, www.gillensarmy.com/outofsite

2002       Alliance for American Quilts Association, Quilters S.O.S. Save Our Stories, Oral history

               Interview, www.centerforthequilt.org/qso

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS AND REVIEWS

2012:     Noplaceness: Art in a Post-Urban Landscape 

             The Studio Quilt, No.6: State of the Art  

             Modern Sculpture

2010:     Hand to Hand: 195 Artists Witness the Iraq War, Cecelia Kane, Blurb                        Publishing, p. 281 & 327

             Unique Fiber Art… http://artofday.com/wordpress/?tag=leisa-rich

             Sweet Station Leisa Rich http://sweet-station.com/blog/2010/06/leisa-rich/

             Threads of Reconnection  http://artslammagazine.com/?p=6994

2009:     Quilt National 2009, Lark Books, p.49

             Artist Leisa Rich Gets to the Root of the Problem, Cinque Hicks

              http://clatl.com/atlanta/artist-leisa-rich-gets-to-the-root-of-the-problem/Content?oid=1281230

2008:     Best of America Sculpture Artists and Artisans, Volume 1, Kennedy Publishing, p.85

             Visual Arts review, Atlanta Journal Constitution, August 28, 2008, section H10

AWARDS

2008      Second Place Award, Atlanta Artist Center National Juried Exhibition, Atlanta, Georgia

2007      Distinguished Jury Award, Earth Matters,The University of Texas-Pan American, Edinburg, Texas            

              Juror’s Award, Materials: Hard and Soft Exhibition, The Meadows Gallery-The Center for the

              Visual Arts, Denton, Texas

COLLECTIONS

The University of North Texas; The University of Texas- Pan American; private collections. List available upon request.

TEACHING EXPERIENCE

Present      Self-Employed Art Educator/ GASP- Teacher (Art), The Galloway School, Atlanta, Georgia

                 Travel-to-teach: Snow Farm; Peters Valley, SCC, Touchstone, etc.

                 Teacher (Art), Callanwolde Fine Arts Center, Atlanta, Georgia

2007-09     Teaching Artist, The High Museum, Atlanta, Georgia

2005          Teaching Assistant in Fibers, The University of North Texas School of Visual Art, Denton, TX.

                  Teaching Assistant- Design 1,The University of North Texas School of Visual Art, Denton, TX.

2002-04     Director/Teacher, Art & Beyond School of Art for Children and Adults, Coppell, Texas

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS

American Craft Council

Surface Design Association- State Rep (Georgia) 2008-2010

Sixfold Collective

South East Fiber Art Alliance- Board of Directors

Sculpture