Alexa Hainsworth
Alexa Hainsworth has a Masters of Fine Arts from the University of Saskatchewan. She produces fiber sculpture and installation environments that offer unique experiences and surprises. Hainsworth enjoys playing with materials, finding ways to manipulate and stretch them to behave in new and unexpected ways. Her works have animated qualities that give the sensation that they are living creatures. She has shown her works in Nuit Blanche Toronto and in Saskatoon. She has won multiple prizes in the Saskatoon Wearable Art Gala for the Jack Millikin Center. She has also shown work at the Anna Leonowen's Gallery in Nova Scotia, the Mendel Art Gallery and participated in numerous residencies locally and abroad. Alexa Hainsworth works for the Saskatchewan Craft Council. She is a member of Bridges Art Movement in Saskatoon and is a board member of Emma International Collaboration. Alexa Hainsworth brings a wild energy to everything she does, dressing in colourful clothing to stay connected to her art practice on the daily.
“Antonio”
Textiles, with their tactile warmth and cultural associations with comfort and domesticity, become an unexpected conduit for unease, curiosity, and wonder. By enlarging these insects beyond life-size and rendering them in vibrant, sometimes iridescent fibres, I invite viewers to confront what they might otherwise squash, ignore, or fear only now transformed into something strangely endearing or awe-inspiring. My process is both meticulous and playful. I use traditional sewing, felting, and stuffing techniques, often layering textures and colours to evoke exoskeletons, legs, and strange, impossible anatomies. I draw inspiration from dreams, folklore, and microscopic life forms entities that challenge our definitions of beauty, utility, and threat. These plush insects are not just creatures; they are emissaries from other realms. They suggest a world where the alien is not to be conquered but welcomed. A world where softness is power, and the grotesque can be revered. Through them, I ask viewers to reconsider what belongs, what thrives, and what possibilities lie in the spaces between reality and imagination.
LOcation: AKA Gallery, Window Gallery
See the full map for more details.
