For over a decade now, I have been documenting the “stuff” of our society that we use once and throw away. Americans create more garbage, per capita, than any other culture, yet we are blind to our waste. I believe this is a function of our wealth, and the vastness of our country. We have the room to hide our waste, and the money to make more. I collect many things, among them, bottle caps, credit cards, pencils, and chop sticks. I use these everyday items to make work, which transforms the objects and surprises us. I am an environmentalist, receiving great joy from the natural world. This makes me aware of how we take what we have for granted. We are used to using “stuff” once and then throwing it away. We may throw it away, but my work makes me aware of its continual impact.

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One of Bryant's specialties is creating community art projects with groups of children or adults. She will work with you to create your own project designed for a specific event and/or group of participants, or she will lead you in a project of her own design. Bryant also likes to engage groups of students or adults in the making of her larger environmental installations.

Full Resume.pdf

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2006 - Instructor, Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Deer Isle, ME

2005 - Independent book making workshop, Aarau, Switzerland

2004 - RIVER OF CAPS, an installation made in collaboration with Winston-Salem/Forsyth Co. Schools, Sawtooth Center, SECCA, and funded in part by the NC Arts Council.

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2008 - 2008 Fiber Biennial, Snyderman Gallery, Philadelphia, PA, March 6-April, 2008, curated by Bruce Hoffman

2007 - Parkway Show, Blue Spiral 1, Asheville, NC--Sept-Oct.

2006 - The EDGES OF GRACE: PROVOCATIVE, UNCOMMON CRAFT, Fuller Craft Museum, Brockton, MA. Curated by Gail Brown.

2006 - ELEMENTS: An Invitational Exhibition of Assemblage/CollageWork, Rocky Mount Arts Center, Rocky Mount, NC

2005 - NESTING INSTINCT, an installation at the Orange County Historical Society, Hillsborough, NC

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Headlands Center for the Arts, Sausalito, CA Residency--2006

North Carolina Arts Council--Visual Arts Grants 2000, 1996

Haystack Mountain School of Crafts--Instructor--2006

Penland School of Crafts--Instructor--2004

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REGROWTH
Greenhill Center for North Carolina Art, Greensboro, NC.
June 20-August 24, 2008
Artist’s talk by Bryant Holsenbeck: July 2, 2008, 12 noon. www.greenhillcenter.org

GO GREEN - group show
Dowstudio, Deer isle, ME
July 6-August 9, 2008 -- www.dowstudiodeerisle.com

"Accumulation and Transformation" mixed-media class instructor at Arrowmont School of Crafts, Gatlinburg, TN
July 27-August 2, 2008 -- www.arrowmont.org

Residency
North Hampton County, NC, October 6-10, 2008

ANIMAL IMAGERY- group show
Blue Spiral 1, Asheville, NC.
November 6-December 27, 2008 -- www.bluespiral1.com

Bryant Holsenbeck began her arts career as a basket maker. Since that time she has evolved into an environmental artist who makes large-scale installations that document the waste stream of our society. She has shown her work and taught throughout the United States. She has been the recipient of 2 North Carolina Arts Council Fellowships, a Project Grant and an NEA Arts and Learning Grant that she worked on in collaboration with the Chapel Hill Public Arts Commission. Her installation, “River of caps” (November, 2004) was a 105 ft. fluid design of bottle caps and jar lids collected over a period of 10 years. She made this installation in collaboration with 85 high school students in Winston-Salem, NC with funding provided by the North Carolina Arts Council. She is currently working on two large projects. WHAT DO KIDS CARE ABOUT? A Labyrinth of Shoes with Souls Attached and WILD Life. She is a community artist who likes to work with groups of people to make large-scale installations using the “stuff” of our society. She is also an independent studio artist who makes books, birds, and sculptures out of recycled materials.

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2008 - Artist in Residence, Resource Center for Women, Ministry and the South, www.rcwms.org

2006 - Artist in Residence, Headlands Center for the Arts, Sausalito, CA

2002 - Invited to make an ornament for the White House Christmas Tree, Washington, DC

2000 - Awarded a North Carolina Arts Council Visual Arts Grant

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2005 - New Southerner, August/September 2005, online magazine article by Rebecca Wolbach

2000 - Baskets: A Book for Makers & Collector, Billie Ruth Sudduth, publisher Lark Press

1994 - Fiber Arts, September/October, pages 30-31

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To email Bryant: bryant@bryantholsenbeck.com

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