Interview With Jessica So Ren Tang

Thea Hurwitz: How does craft/ textiles connect to your personal story and background? 

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Jessica So Ren Tang: One of my earliest memories with textile/craft art was cross stitching bookmarks at a day camp and learning know to knit from my mother. Beyond that, and the occasional knitted scarf, I didn’t really interact or create textile work, inside or outside of school. 

 

TH: What is the timeline of your craft education? Are there any important figures or moments that contribute to that education? 

 

JT: I’ve always leaned towards the arts in school and chose any available art lessons/clubs that were open. It wasn’t until I studied abroad to Seoul, South Korea, that I began to think about fiber arts. I got to see Doh Ho Suh exhibit and walked through his life size textile homes. I also got to see in progress work by Korean students at the arts building on campus. These events later influenced my decision to use textiles while preparing for my senior art exhibition back in college. For an assignment, I experimented with sewing into random materials around me, which ended up being a styrofoam cup noodle container. The material was terrible to work with but I liked the imagery of the cup that I decided to replicate it in fabric. From there, my object series was born and shortly after then I started my girl series.

 

TH: What drew you to embroidery? 

 

JT: For a while I felt limited and uninspired with painting and sculpting. When I started to embroider I really enjoyed the flexibility and softness that came with it. It felt different and unexplored. I could imitate illustration, painting, sculpture and more with embroidery. I also felt a more personal connection with embroidery based on the general history and tradition of textile arts, in particular with my Chinese background and as a cis woman.

 

TH: How do you feel about the classification of textile art? Are there any terms you prefer or terms you particularly disagree with? (fine arts versus decorative, craft versus art)

 

JT: When I started with embroidery I wanted to push my work to a level where it avoids the stigma of being considered a craft. I once dreamed of seeing my work in fine art galleries alongside great masterpieces listed in every art history book. But I’ve since learned that the “fine art” world is largely made up by wealthy and privileged. I was conflicted when trying to distance myself from other stitched work. I didn’t want to pit myself against others and that craft isn’t necessarily a dirty work. Craft is craft and craft is important. I just want to make art that makes me happy and whatever terms that come with it, doesn’t really matter to me.
 

TH: What does the phrase ‘women’s work’ mean to you? What associations does it inspire? 

 

JT: Words like domestic, personal, private, and traditional come to mind when thinking about the phrase “women’s work”.
 

TH: What comes to mind when you think of craft and community? Could you expand on how you interact with your community through your work?

 

JT: One of my hopes is to see more textile artists. For this reason, I don’t mind sharing my progress and methods or even assisting others with their ideas (within reason, assuming they’re not aiming to just copy my work). I found that in college, professors tend to be secretive with advice or techniques, assuming they fear that they’re supporting artists who may later be a threat to their livelihood. But I see that as a hindrance to the medium. I want to see the textile arts flourish as a whole. I want to see amazing art. I want to see something different, unique, awe-inspiring because maybe it can inspire me back.
 

TH: In your statement for your object series, you mention that embroidery can transform objects into something familiar, yet unfamiliar. Could you perhaps expand upon the role of materials in your body of work? 

 

JT: As an American born Chinese woman, my identity is caught between two cultures. While ethnically Chinese, I don’t fit the “Chinese stereotype” having been born and raised in California. But in American society, I will always be seen as “other” or “foreign”. My statement in replicating objects in a different material is meant to reflect this duality. This “object” looks like the original, but it will never be an original due to its material.
 

TH: Where do you situate embroidery in conversation with your formal art education? 

 

JT: I didn’t formally learn embroidery through school but via the internet and experimentation. Having majored in studio art, I could translate my lessons to better create and critique my own work. 

 

TH: Could you speak to the role of repetitive practices and slowness in your art practice? Does the handmade aspect of your embroidery interact with your work’s themes? 

 

JT: I did not consider the repetitiveness of embroidery when I originally started stitching. It sort of just was the nature of it. I want to continue to push the level of my own work and regardless of what I do, repetitiveness and slowness is always to be expected. I’m not bothered by it much, other than when I have to crunch in the hours in order to meet deadlines. 

Having the handmade aspect in my work is more so a way to make it authentic to me and my experiences. I could use a machine to create my work but it feels more personal and private to stitch by hand. 

 

TH: What practices do you think are necessary for institutions to responsibly display and support artists who work with textiles? 

 

JT: I think the first major step is to just include textile artists in their institutions. The second is to be time sensitive. It takes me an average of one month to finish one piece while illustrators or painters can produce multiple pieces within  that same time frame. Personally, I would prefer if galleries would reach out as early as they can if they are interested in inviting me to a show. 

 

TH: To you, what are some of the most radical aspects of contemporary craft practice? 

 

JT: Like with any other medium, embroidery is no stranger to being used for politics and movements.
 

TH: Where is your favorite place to find craft art? 

 

JT: Honestly, Instagram is where I consume art nowadays. I follow some galleries online but prefer to follow other artists and be recommended to other artists through those I follow.
 

TH: Do you know any artists that I should look into for this project? 

 

JT: I’ve looked through some posts I’ve saved on Instagram. Here’s some folks that may fit what you’re looking for.

@sd_artifacts

@seantylerfineart

@threadforfilth

@spain.studio

@pink.pal