Sheila Hicks's Alison Jacques Gallery exhibition showcases fiber art from monumental to miniature

Sheila Hicks presented her second solo show at Alison Jacques Gallery in London from October 4 to November 11, 2017. The exhibition featured a range of her fiber-based works, including the large-scale sculptural cluster Grande Boules (2009) and the suspended golden-yellow installation I am at the Gate (2017). Smaller pieces like the Minimes series, such as Back from the Front, “TUV” (2017) using Japanese sashiko stitching, highlighted her travels in Africa, Asia, and South America. Other notable works included Torsade Orange (2015) with forest-green tendrils and Shaker (2017), a grid made from an old shirt inspired by Shaker communities. The show contrasted her monumental installations, like Escalade Beyond Chromatic Lands (2016–17) at the Venice Biennale and Hop, Skip, Jump, and Fly: Escape From Gravity (2017) on New York's High Line, with more intimate, tactile creations. Hicks, an octogenarian artist, emphasized the accidental beauty found in everyday arrangements, as noted in her quote about keeping one's eyes open. The review, from ArtReview's December 2017 issue, discussed tensions between large and small works, questioning if the former countered perceptions of her art as mere craft.