B. 1980 Houston, Texas
BA, 2002 University of Chicago
MFA, 2008 Massachusetts College of Art and Design, FAWC
I create art as a form of devotion and resistance; it is a ritual cast through the placement of objects to tell a story.
My career began with a background in alternative process photography (1998-2002) but quickly found success in large-scale textile sculptural installations(2006-2016). In 2019 I received a Pollock Krasner Foundation Grant for a series of paintings about love and loss and finding oneself through tender heaviness.
I am interested in research based projects and tend to lean towards working with layers, textures, and embellishments. An in/coherent dreamy messiness is visible in my work whether as sewn pieces, paintings, video projects, installations or performance work. Experimenting with various forms of mark making allows me to stay connected to a diverse way of expressing and integrating subjects and ideas. I work on projects that allow me to feel my way through the process, choosing subjects that are both symbols of devotion and resistance.
Recently, I have been deep in research and development in the studio working on a new series of still lifes that are made with quick loose painterly gestures in a limited color palette. These paintings are a departure from my previous work in both style and size. These paintings savor the moment building dreamy, moody, poignant atmospheres of implied storied perspectives. Images of this new work are not yet on the website but I can provide images upon request.
Wylie Garcia is a queer, Mexican-Swedish-American artist living and working in Vermont. She/They are the recipient of many artist grants and fellowships; most notably a Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant, several Vermont Arts Council Creation Grants, a St. Botolph Club Foundation Artist Grant, and a Sustainable Arts Foundation Fellowship to the Vermont Studio Center. Their work can be found in the permanent collections of the Fleming Museum, the University of Vermont Medical Center, and Georgetown College.
In addition to maintaining a professional studio practice, Wylie is also the Director /Curator of The Champlain College Art Gallery in Burlington, Vermont and the Co-Director of ATM Gallery- a new artist-run project space in Shelburne, Vermont.