Roycroft Emerging Artists Fuller + Hallborg TalkBack at ACWC

Work by Roycroft Emerging Artist Tami Fuller (Fiber, 2022) and Ed Hallborg (Sculpture, 2024) are the subjects of a joint exhibition by the Arts Council for Wyoming County on view through Friday, September 25: excavations | [de]-compositions | intersections.

The artists will discuss their work and creative processes during an artist talk on Friday, September 11, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the ACWC Gallery, 31 South Main Street in Perry.

The exhibition brings together Fuller’s abstract fiber work and Hallborg’s experimental cement sculpture, creating a powerful conversation about material, identity, transformation, collaboration and the ways artwork is shaped by its presentation.

Fuller is an East Aurora-based studio fiber artist whose practice includes woven tapestry, felt, soft sculpture, mixed media and metal. Raised on a family sheep farm and deeply connected to the fiber community, she draws upon traditional forms of women’s work while exploring post-trauma identity, survivorship, reclamation and self-actualization from a female perspective.

By combining wool with metal, sharp lines, organic material and unexpected objects, Fuller creates work that is simultaneously stark and delicate. Her intuitive approach allows woven structures to escape, unravel and overflow, reflecting the disintegration and reconstruction of identity during and after crisis.

Hallborg is a Western New York scenic designer, studio artist and educator who holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Theatre Design through the SUNY system. His sculptural practice grew from his early experience working with wood forms and concrete as a carpenter’s apprentice in the Southwestern United States.

Hallborg uses an unconventional process he calls “Cement Painting,” applying thin layers of cement to found and constructed objects. The resulting works, which he calls “Glyphs,” have the visual weight of architectural concrete while remaining surprisingly lightweight.

For this exhibition, Hallborg also considers the three-way collaboration among artist, fellow artist and curator. Some works invite the curator to participate directly in their final presentation.

Together, Fuller and Hallborg challenge the boundaries between fiber, sculpture, architecture, and installation. The September 11 artist talk will be moderated by local creative Norman Gayford and will offer members of the arts council and the public an opportunity to learn more about the ideas, personal experiences and material experimentation behind the work.

A special closing reception will be held Friday, September 25, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., in conjunction with stamping day for the Pieces of Perry – En Plein Air Festival.

The exhibition is presented at the Arts Council for Wyoming County, located at 31 South Main Street in Perry. For more information, visit www.artswyco.org, call (585) 237-3517 or email krysta@artswyco.org

Fuller is a native of WNY who works in fiber sculpture and has served as Executive Director of RALA since 2023. She was a founding Emerging Artists Fellow in 2022 and now serves as the chair of this educational initiative program. The Roycroft Emerging Artists Program seeks to provide opportunities and fostering for rising local artists who exhibit a quality of work in keeping with the Roycroft standards in their chosen mediums. The program advances RALA’s express mission to serve as an organization to further the revitalization and evolution of the Arts & Crafts Movement, in both craft and fine art. The program is designed to give those who are exhibiting a high quality of work the opportunity to see if a path to juried status exists, and highlight areas where specific improvement could be cultivated in order to pursue membership. It is not necessary to be working in the “Arts & Crafts” traditions to be considered. Applications for the program open in February. Four fellows are chosen each year. Fellows are granted use of Roycroft Emerging Artist on CV in perpetuity until such time as they choose to jury as a Roycroft Artisan, if they choose to do so. For more information on the Roycroft Emerging Artists Program Application or to join the REA committee, email education@roycroftartisans.org.