Meet Windy Chien | Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Windy Chien and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Windy, why did you pursue a creative career?
After 14 years of owning and operating an independent record shop (San Francisco’s Aquarius Records), and then almost a decade at Apple, I was yearning to work with my hands, but instead I was toiling in an office on a computer keyboard. I felt so envious of people who made tangible, beautiful objects. When I considered doing the same myself, I had a sudden revelation: my work at the record store and at Apple were about supporting *other* people’s creativity. I had never thought I was allowed to focus on my own creativity, and so it had gone neglected. I gave notice at Apple less than a month after the revelation. I thought, if I’m going to have another life, I need to make the change now. So I gave myself permission.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My left and right brain need equal stimulation. Knots (yes, knots) sit at the intersection of function, science, and history, and to that fertile place I add aesthetics, thus illuminating what’s most fascinating about them: the journey of the line.

Knots are artifacts of human ingenuity: an ancient technology predating the wheel and use of fire. Knots manifest tension, direction of pull, forces working in harmony and in opposition. Examining these empirical aspects, I consider their physical function, cultural significance, and aesthetic value.

I gave myself an assignment to learn a new knot —out of the almost 4,000 documented— every day for one year, creating The Year of Knots (2016). As I sought fluency, I came to recognize knotting as a universal language spoken across oceans, centuries, genders, and occupations. I found community by posting each daily knot on Instagram. I published a book about this experience, and today I make large scale minimalist culture entirely using the language of knots.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Shoutout to all of the craftspeople from the past who toiled doing what the fine art world looks down on as “women’s work” – traditions including embroidery, sewing, needlepoint, quilting, crochet, macrame, and more. When I make fine art using the techniques of craft, I reject and rectify a hierarchy that keeps the work of craftspeople —so often women and people of color— underrecognized.

Website: Http://windychien.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/windychien/

Image Credits
Studio WIndy Chien, Cesar Rubio Photography, Molly DeCoudreaux Photography