Shari Boraz

Having earned a BFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where I majored in textile design, my goal is to attract the viewer to my art and provoke their own creative thinking.

I hand-embroider on table linens or textiles that I’ve hand-dyed or digitally created. My work flows out of my sub-conscious; working without a plan, I let the imagery flow. It’s slow, meditative, and evolves at its own pace. I “paint” with meticulous embroidery stitches, and as I stitch, I notice the undercurrents of my thoughts.

I’m influenced by Jungian symbolism, and iconography found in ancient and biblical cultures. In addition, Gauguin, Cézanne, Matisse, Picasso, and Chagall have all impacted my aesthetics. Influences that share my way of communicating through emotive and deeply personal symbolism include Frieda Kahlo, Kiki Smith, and Louise Bourgeois.

SCHOOL OF THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO, Chicago, IL
B.F.A. in Art Education and Textile Design

COLLECTIONS
Rubin Museum of Art
Museum of Art and Design
Numerous Individual’s Collections

HONORS and AWARDS
2019 Best in Show, Fiberlicious, Loading Dock Gallery, Lowell, MA
2017 First in Show Award, Subversive/Domestic, Shenandoah Valley Art Center, Waynesboro, VA
1994 First Place, Grailville Quilt and Fiber Art Show, Loveland, OH
1981 Honorable Mention, Appalachiana Recollections Wearable Vest Competition and
Exhibit, Bethesda, MD
1973 Honorable Mention, Levi Strauss & Co. Denim Art Contest, San Francisco, CA

SOLO and SMALL GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2021 XX: Women 2020, CAB Gallery at the University of North Carolina Wilmington,
https://publish.exhibbit.com/gallery/66513967/long-gallery-15821/
2020 A Closer Look: The Meaning Underneath, Jaffrey Civic Center, Jaffrey NH
2020 Juried Regional Exhibition Online, Library Art Center & Gallery,
https://libraryartscenter.org/exhibits/juriedregional2020/, Newport, NH
2019 Borders of Consciousness: Dreaming in Color, AVA Gallery and Art Center, Lebanon, NH
2018 Northern Stage Lobby Artists Program, Northern Stage Theater, White River Junction, VT
2018 Commentary, The Roth Center, Dartmouth College, Hanove...