SILVIA BECCARIA

Silvia, born in Turin in 1965

is a representative of “Fiber Art,” a name which has designated the artistic production characterised by the work of natural and/or artificial fibers since the 60s. The artist uses a hand texture technique and plays with it in total liberty. Having hands and mind in perfect harmony, going against the rules, and yet at the same time beiing careful with the heredity of the antique technique, she looks into the past, though expressing herself with the contemporary language of research and experimentation.

Through the years, she has indeed ideated non-conventional fabrics woven with silk, wool, linen, cotton, other materials such as plastic tubes, bubblewrap, metals, paper, aluminium and rubber foil, obtaining original and unique effects from the material itself. The fiber, whether it be wool, rubber, paper, metal, or plastic, is thus the linguistic instrument Silvia uses to conceive and give life to her idea designed and created at the loom.

The material and the loom guide her and translate what her heart and mind suggest and allow her emotions and her frame of mind to be visible. From her experiments, dress-sculpures are born. These are conceived to be used daily as wearable art or “objects” of wearing apparel which have nothing to do with fashion. Her pictures and nettings reveal personal poetics which fold the material to the needs of the language.

Hand weaving is a passion that this artist from Turin discovered at a very young age. She was absolutely fascinated to see the weave grow through her hands as she started off with just a simple thread. After graduating in philosophy, she began a course of study and an in-depth examination of various weaving techniques varying from contemporary tapestry to common fabrics. She then went on to specialize in the design of hand looms under the guidance of Martha Nieuwenhuijs known textile artist.

Since 1993 she has been elaborating didactic projects in which weaving is utilized as an instrument of rehabilitation and education. She collaborates as a consultant within facilities for psychologically disabled people, convicts, minors at risk, and she also works with disabled teenagers as a weaving technician in the social-educational day center “Il Mosaico” in Fossano (CN).

As of 2002 she has taken care of the planning regarding several jobs linked to weaving art for the Contemporary Arts Museum - Educational department of Rivoli.

Silvia designs and produces dress-sculptures, pictures, nettings, clothing accessories, and she also participates in numerous art exhibitions.