Megan Singleton
2016 Smelser Vallion Visiting Artist
Megan Singleton is a practicing artist and educator located in St. Louis, Missouri. Her ecology-based work crisscrosses the boundaries of contemporary craft, combining sculpture, hand papermaking, installation, and digital applications. She received her MFA in Sculpture from Louisiana State University and BFA in Photography from Webster University. She actively exhibits nationally and internationally, her work can be found in the collections of the Louisiana Art and Science Museum, the Robert C. Williams Paper Museum, as well as numerous private and corporate collections. She holds an adjunct position at Saint Louis University, teaching Fiber Arts. Megan also serves on the board of directors for the hand papermaking organization The Friends of Dard Hunter, as V.P of Membership and Development, and is a member of the International Art Collective Expanded Draught, based in Galway Ireland. In 2015 she was the recipient of a $20,000 Artist Fellowship from the St. Louis Regional Arts Commission and in 2016 was the recipient of the Smelser Vallion Visiting Artist Fellowship in Taos, NM.
Artist Statement
The investigation of ecological relationships within society and the landscape is the basis of my work. As an interdisciplinary artist, I create works that resonate with the materiality and rhythms of the natural world. My creative practice intertwines sculpture, handmade paper, found objects, printmaking, photography, and books arts. Research, both material and scholarly, is a critical component of my studio activities. I am an observer, collector, fabricator, and instigator of thought and haptic experience.
I have an expertise in hand papermaking and utilize my knowledge of this historic craft to create work in a contemporary context that transforms invasive plant fibers into works of art. This process of collection and transformation honors the plants as living organisms, while simultaneously engaging and educating viewers about the importance of invasive-species awareness. My work is placed based, inspired by the desire to interpret the landscapes of disrupted, invaded ecologies and natural phenomena.
I am interested in how art can address and engage people with the natural world, and connect with the physical actions of a growing, living environment. This, in turn, can inspire communities and individuals to care and foster the growth and revitalization of our landscapes and their natural systems.
Megan Singleton had a talk "Rios: An Exploration of New Mexico Landscapes through Hand Papermaking" on Thursday, February 23, 2017 in OSU, Stillwater campus.
She also did a Papermaking Workshop on Friday, February 24, 2017 at the Multi Arts Center in Stillwater.