Elizabeth J. Buckley
Dialogues Through the Veil, 2010
48 in x 25 in

Elizabeth J. Buckley
Molten Beneath Strata, 2017
83.5 in x 28 in

Elizabeth J. Buckley’s Artist Statement

Elizabeth J. Buckley’s approach to tapestry involves working in multiple layers and dimensions to create visual poems of blended colors and light. Many of her tapestries evoke the metaphor of weaving the world into being, as well as deep, geologic memory of the Earth. Her Veil Tapestries reference the drape of fabric often depicted in classic, historic French tapestry, as well as describe how wind’s movement can lift the curtain that separates one realm from another. Her Earth Works Tapestries synthesize substrata with the texture of grasses and allusions to winged flight.

The Veils of Time tapestry offers glimpses within a story that begins in the molecular energy of atoms, DNA strands, star-lit galaxies, and in the invertebrate gastropod forms that began many millennia ago, long before the dinosaurs roamed the swamps. Molten Beneath Strata describes the energy of molten lava deep within the mantle surrounding the earth’s core. Migration alludes to the Sandhill Cranes in migration, often flying so high that they look like glitter in the sky as the sunlight catches on their wings.

Elizabeth J. Buckley
Migration, 2018
12 in x 11.75 in

Elizabeth J. Buckley’s Artist Biography

Elizabeth Buckley is a second-generation tapestry artist and teacher of over fifty years. Her work has evolved from using techniques of the Mexican and Rio Grande traditions to those of French tapestry. She further honed her skills in Aubusson, France, at the atelier of Gisèle Brivet. Elizabeth prefers to work in the Aubusson tradition for her larger works. She is devoted to being a lineage-keeper of these vanishing techniques, not only through her own tapestries but also in her teaching. With her degree in art, Elizabeth brings to the classroom her deep grounding in design principles and color theory that specifically apply to tapestry. She draws from multiple tapestry traditions to provide her students with the technical vocabulary for finding and expressing their own unique voice.

Elizabeth J. Buckley’s tapestries have a lengthy exhibition history, including national and Canadian juried and invitational shows, as well as in museum exhibitions. Her work is in numerous private collections and was featured in the Fiber Art Now article on “An Artist’s Sense of Place,” the Fall 2017 issue. Her publications include FiberArts Design Book V and Carol K. Russell’s The Tapestry Handbook: the Next Generation and Contemporary International Tapestry. In 2011, Elizabeth was awarded the American Tapestry Alliance Award for Excellence in Tapestry.