Comfort Zone

PROJECT OVERVIEW

Title: Comfort Zone
Photo Credit:
Lead Artist(s):

Description:

Sheila Klein’s architectural-scale fiber works, entitled Comfort Zone, adds softness and a sense of hand to a 5-story office building that houses Harborview Medical Center administration and clinic functions. Using a custom steel yarn product made for the artist by a Begium-based corporation Bekaert, Klein enlisted a team of dedicated and skilled weavers to produce hand-woven, exterior artworks. Employing brains and brawn, the weaving team-Peggy Bridgman, Sidney Dodge, Debra Lacey, Katharine Lewis, and Patricia McDonald—found that using the innovative material proved challenging and rewarding. Looms, shuttles, and techniques all had to be reinvented during the fabrication process to accommodate the heft of the stainless steel yarn. The geometric elegance of the Art Deco ornamentation on the original Harborview Medical Center buildings, the wooden fretwork trim of the area’s older homes, and the comfort that handmade objects offer provided inspiration for the work. Classic textile patterns including Brooks Bouquet, Spanish Lace, and Danish Medallion, were woven on shaped frame looms into five gossamer panels, each measuring 12 feet and 28 feet on the Broadway side of the building. On the Boren Avenue side of the building, a 30 foot crochet artwork hangs directly above the entry doors.

PROJECT LOCATION

Hospital
Pat Steele Building Exterior - Harborview Medical Center
401 Broadway
Seattle, WA 98122
United States

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PROJECT TEAM

4Culture
4Culture
PROJECT DETAILS

Permanent
268,000
Fiber Art
Textile/Fiber Art
Custom steel yarn, steel
2004
2005