Featured Artist Molly Zimmer

“I hope that my work can display a vibrant love of nature, while creating a sanctuary for myself and others to enjoy.”
I create textile assemblages that respond to the human need to feel more connected to nature, a sensation known as “biophilia.” Using fabric as a material for collage, I create textured portals into a playful, whimsical, and bright garden realm. These soft fabric sculptures aim to immerse the viewer with the sensual comforts and respite of gardens, bringing flora into the home. I hope that my work can display a vibrant love of nature, while creating a sanctuary for myself and others to enjoy.
Fabrics are snipped, trimmed, folded, wrapped, arranged, and eventually sewn together to build a textured language akin to that of vegetation. Some shapes are planned, others are found through a responsive process of moving one fabric into the composition, then taking it away, then trying another. Inspired by gardens, I search for an energy similar to the dense, layered, haphazardness of composed plantings; I want to create a tropical, buzzing, busy, summer atmosphere.
My work draws on collective feminine histories of craft.  I incorporate quilting, weaving, knitting, crochet, and embroidery into my artworks. My mom and grandmother taught me to sew, and I am proud to carry on a love for handwork, creativity, self-sufficiency and resourcefulness.
Hello, Dear Flower is what a bumblebee would say to a newly opened blossom. This collection of textile assemblages represents Molly’s own sacred refuge of floral abundance. Each piece is a bouquet bringing a heartfelt message of affection to the viewer. Molly constructs bouquets of perennials and insects that remind her of her mother and grandmother, both avid gardeners. The two of them share plants and swap seeds, helping each other to connect through the creation of natural sanctuaries that dazzle one with their colors. Being a cultivator too informs Molly’s art practice; tending, observing, and pressing flowers, and collecting natural plant dyes. And like a living garden, her work is a gesture that honors how gardens teach resilience through understanding the cyclical nature of the seasons and the activity of pollination.
Molly’s Bio
Molly Zimmer is a multimedia artist. Her fabric sculptures combine painting, textile, and collage with recycled materials. She holds an MFA in Painting from the University of New Mexico, and a BFA in Painting and Curatorial Studies from Maryland Institute College of Art. Her work has been exhibited throughout New Mexico and nationally. She has taught sewing, natural dyeing, drawing, and painting courses through community-engaged workshops at museums, non-profit art centers, K-12 schools and universities.  She lives in Arlington, MA.
Molly’s work has been exhibited in solo shows at Cerulean Gallery, Harwood Art Center and Exhibit 208. She has participated in numerous group shows at Yeiser Art Center, Paducah, KY; Fleckenstein Gallery, Baltimore, MD; Albuquerque Museum, Tamarind Institute, and Small Engine Gallery, Albuquerque, NM; Form and Concept Gallery and Santa Fe Art Institute, Santa Fe, NM; The Alternative Gallery, Allentown, PA; and Amarillo Museum of Art, Amarillo, TX. Her works are in private collections throughout California, New Mexico, Maryland, Texas and North Carolina, Oregon, and Florida.