RETREAD ART
JANE REITER
Lansing, Michigan USA
Welcome to Retread Art
I am a mixed media artist, librarian and teacher. I love to utilize recycled and repurposed "stuff" in my artwork to create collages. I use fabric, fiber, beads, yarn, paper, ink, watercolor, stitching and more!
Rejoice, restart, reimagine, recycle, reform, rejuvenate, redo......
Who is Jane?
Artist Statement; A love of fiber, fabric, and yarn — along with a sense of adventure and joie de vivre – that’s me! An enthusiastic approach combined with unique combinations of materials – that’s me! A quirky attitude using color, texture, and pattern to express itself – that’s me! A lifetime centered on creating tactile artwork and following an offbeat path — YES. For me, art is fun, provocative, mind boggling, and limitless — welcome to my visual universe.
“An artist cannot speak about his art any more than a plant can discuss horticulture.”
Jean Cocteau, 1889-1963
My Mission: Follow an artFULL path
I am an artist living in Delta Township, Eaton County, having relocated from New Jersey to Michigan in 2000. My academic background is in fiber, having earned undergraduate and graduate degrees in studio art. I use mixed media collage as my primary expression, incorporating fiber, yarn, paper, ephemera and fabric along with stitching, crochet, and more. Love of color, pattern, texture and a sense of humor infuses my artwork. I have displayed and marketed my art work in exhibitions and shows for several years. I am motivated by repurposing nontraditional materials into fresh and unexpected fabrications.
As a librarian, I enjoy incorporating bits and pieces from books and magazines into mixed media collages. Researching mandalas online one day led me to “Zendalas” created from “Zentangle®.” I was seriously intrigued and began looking around at Zendalas and tangled patterns. Zentangle is a meditative and soothing approach to drawing patterns on a variety of surfaces, starting simply with pen and paper. In 2012 I was awarded the Chris Clark Fellowship from the Arts Council of Greater Lansing. I traveled to Providence, Rhode Island, to train with the founders of Zentangle, Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas. The emphasis on patterns truly feeds off of my previous textile design experience. Consequently, I like to include drawn and painted patterns within my collage pieces.
