Artist Spotlight: Krissy Teegerstrom

Artist Spotlight

Aug 8

Each month, we highlight one of the talented artists in our reuse community. This month, it’s textile artist Krissy Teegerstrom (she/her)!

Krissy shares her journey as an exhibition artist, inspirations, and the role that reuse plays in each of her beautiful pieces. Continue reading below to learn more and view some images of her artwork!

1. When did you start making textile art?

I started making one-of-a-kind wearable pieces ten years ago. I found secondhand jackets and shirts, embellished them and sold them in boutiques and directly to my customers.

In 2021, I received a download to create one-of-a-kind capes utilizing entirely secondhand materials. That vision showed me capes in an art gallery setting. This was surprising and intimidating to me, because previously I had only shown collage art in a couple of group shows. Long story short, that vision came to pass and I first exhibited capes in a gallery setting in March 2022.

2. Which aspect of creating is your favorite?

It’s hard to name a favorite! Finding the secondhand materials is a key part of the final outcome, since you can never predict what you’ll find. I love sewing sequins and beads, it’s meditative and rewarding. I love playing with colors, texture and reflectivity. My least favorite part is finishing the pieces: hand sewing hems and closures, putting in lining, etc. If anyone loves that part and wants some occasional paid work, get in touch!

3. Where do you get your inspiration?

It’s mysterious. Big inspiration comes to me out of the blue, usually as full pictures in my head. Often I’m puzzled or intimidated by what I see in my mind’s eye. I used to waste time worrying about whether I should move forward with the inspiration, or whether I was capable of physically creating what I was envisioning. Through experience, I’ve learned to trust my intuition and inspiration and just get started with it. To keep my inspiration tank filled on a day-to-day level, I go into nature or to my garden, or just watch the natural light. Daily meditation and creating calm in my nervous system also helps keep me open to receiving inspiration. I’m so fascinated by where inspiration comes from, that I produced a podcast called Beyond + Back where I talked with musicians, artists, and other creatives about it. You can listen to it on my website.

4. What is your preferred way to engage with your audience?

In person! In July 2022, I showed “I Was Already Everything” at the Do Right Hall in Marfa, Texas. It’s an interactive exhibit of seven capes, each representing a fragment of my Self that I recovered through therapy. I was present throughout the exhibit, and I offered to walk through the hall with attendees to have a conversation around the themes of each piece. I had the most interesting, compelling and intimate interactions with total strangers, some of whom I call friends now. It’s rare to feel safe enough to connect on that level, but it’s something I value so much. I plan to bring the exhibit to Austin, I’m just looking for the right space for it.

5. How does reuse play a part in your creativity?

Reuse is a vital part of my creativity. Even my tools are secondhand, down to my beloved 1948 Singer Featherweight sewing machine. You know how on Project Runway, the designers are given a few hundred dollars and let loose to buy anything they want in a huge fabric store? That would scramble my brain. I would freeze! I’d much rather be given $15 to spend in ACR. When it comes to materials and sourcing, my creativity is driven by constraints and problem solving. It fuels my imagination, and it fulfills me to create with a gentle impact on the earth’s resources.

6. What compels you to donate to ACR?

I love the earth so much. When I learned about composting about 15 years ago, it got me thinking about where things come from and where they go when we’re done with them. I think about that with everything I use. Donating to ACR allows me to give back, and feed the supply that has given me so many great materials! I also care for my materials so that I can donate what I don’t use, which makes me conscious of maintaining tools, not wasting fabric, etc., so that I can share them when I’m done.

7. Do you have a favorite ACR find? How did you use it?

I found a bolt of bright pink metallic fabric, I would guess it was lamé but you never know with secondhand because you rarely get labels with fabric content. It’s hard to find that volume of yardage when you use secondhand, so this was a rare treat! I created the Divine Raspberry cape with it (2023). I exhibited the piece at my show at Wrong Marfa and I was thrilled when it was purchased by one of my collectors.

8. Where can we find out more about your work?

Connect with me on my website or my instagram @krissyteegerstrom. If you’re interested in my design work, that’s on IG under @featherweightstudio.