Transforming the Ordinary into the Extraordinary

The Fine Art of Patricia Feiwel

They say the devil is in the details but for artist Patricia Feiwel, it is actually the angels. Feiwel’s work from her hand-woven textiles to intricate collages shows her fine eye for combining different elements whether it is yarn or found objects into a compelling composition. Her art currently being shown at the Women’s Art Center of the Hamptons in Bridgehampton entices viewers to spend time examining the layered objects in their minute scale to return again and again to discover something new.

“When I start a collage, or any art project for that matter, the only restriction I give myself is size — if a particular show gives you that restriction. Otherwise, the materials speak,” explains Feiwel, “I never sketch an idea, I just start, and the work is about the process.”

In her studio in East Hampton, numerous boxes labeled watches, sequins, stamps, necklaces and ceramics indicate a process both expansive and controlled. The objects can be sourced anywhere from antique shops to flea markets to an auto repair yard. Feiwel says, “You see all the ‘stuff’ I have and the boxes of fabrics, etc. Mostly I collect my materials along the way. I am always on the lookout. I will pick up just about anything that is shiny. In any newspaper or magazine, I will tear out anything that appeals to me on any level — from a picture of an earring to a piece of toast. I don’t question why.” 

As a Libra it is not a surprise that Feiwel is about balance. Her trained and instinctual acumen is to know just where to place one object to counterbalance another, both literally or figuratively. Her creations can be inspired from numerous files and picture boards exploring “like things.” Feiwel will move the disparate objects around until she finds the perfect composition before she starts to glue or affix, checking for texture and color balance to be just right. She employs a sort of alchemy that morphs the discarded into the precious.

With an education at Carnegie Mellon in fine arts, she focused on weaving and ceramics. Unlike her contemporaries she was not drawn to painting. “As a weaver I can work with color differently than as a painter. You are physically creating it on the loom.” Feiwel enjoyed a successful career as Design Director for Fieldcrest-Cannon. Yet lest you think of that as any ordinary towel or sheet, inspiration could as easily be from Kandinsky as licensee Martha Stewart. She was influenced by abstract design and her parents (refugees from Vienna) who collected art. In her Springs home with her husband Donald, she has filled her own walls with well-known and local art, reflecting this Hampton’s community where artists support one another.

Working in both the commercial and artistic realms she recounts, “Hand weaving gives you a freedom that working in industry doesn’t. But working in industry gives you access to a wider audience.” Her primary design work led her to travel all over the US as well as Europe and South America. As manufacturing mills closed in this country, she designed lines for Indian and Chinese companies based in the US and woven overseas. Feiwel also designed fabrics for Mary McFadden and Judith Leiber, and her creations made into fashion were carried by Henri Bendel, Saks and Bloomingdales, among others. A unique area that she developed was making “Biographic Boxes” that told a person’s story within a hand designed box. The first one was a 40th birthday gift for author J.K. Rowling, commissioned by her publisher. It included a tiny handmade quilt that had her favorite authors. Many boxes followed for authors, writers and actors. Today her collages and constructions are collected. Some favorites have been Oprah, Ted Danson and David Hockney.

Feiwel has the ability to scale from the minutiae to a large, handwoven fabric wall hanging perfect for a Hamptons home’s wall. “There is nothing that I love more than working on a new piece. Each one is different from the last, and I’m never sure where it’s going. That’s the challenge.” With maybe just a halo above her.