“T here’s a
rhythmic flow
that happens
when I ’m
coiling that I
think satisfies
me like playing
the oboe did,
”
“I might start on a piece I
think is going to be tall and slim
and then it grow s bulbous, or
I’ll start a w all piece and it turns
into a vessel. There’s so much
surprise in the w ork; I’m com -
pletely fascinated by it.”
So, too, are curators and
collectors. Muhl has shown her
w ork and collected awards at
dozens o f juried exhibitions,
including Am erican Craft
Council shows and the Sm ith-
sonian Craft Show ; her baskets
are included in six permanent
museum collections as w ell as
in several art books. She’s rep-
resented b y Cavin-M orris G al-
lery in N ew Y o rk . H er N orth
Carolina gallery, Blue Spiral i
in A sheville, w hich represents
only Southern artists, reluctantly
relinquished its affiliation when
M uhl told them she w ould be
returning to Pennsylvania, but
scheduled a special solo show
for her this spring.
“ Debora has a really unique
contem porary approach to a
traditional form ,” says Blue
Spiral i gallery director Jordan
Ahlers. “H er baskets - really
they’re sculptures - have great
lines and m ovem ent, twisting
and unfurling. T h e y ’re unlike
anything I’d seen before. It’s
as if she’s taken this traditional
form and deconstructed it.”
Indeed, M uhl describes her
years o f basketm aking as a pro-
gression from construction to
deconstruction.
“N o w I’ve gone even further.
I think o f w hat I’ve been doing
lately as collapsing the w ork, o f
opening it up even m ore.” She
flashes an impish grin. “N ext, I
really w ant to w reck the thing.”
+
deboramuhl.com
D ebora M u h l’s solo show at
B lu e Sp ira l i gallery in A sh eville,
N orth Carolina, runs M arch i -
J u n e 2. D ia n e D a n iel is a w riter
in D urham , N orth Carolina.
Collapse, 2011
sweetgrass, ribbon,
waxed linen
18.5 x 18.5 x 13 in.
Layers, 2009
sweetgrass, ribbon,
waxed linen
6 x 9 in. dia.
Rhythm in Blue, 2004
sweetgrass, ribbon,
waxed linen
32 in. dia. x 4 in.
Gold Fish, 2008
sweetgrass, gourd,
ribbon, waxed linen
8 x 15 x 9 in.
feb/mari2 american craft 071
