Statement/Bio

ARTIST STATEMENT:
My current body of work is informed by the nautical phrase “feeling blue,” referencing the custom of flying blue flags and painting a blue band along a ship’s hull when a captain died at sea. This work follows the recent passing of my two paternal grandmothers. I associate sewing with my step-grandma Jane, as her presence at the sewing machine was constant as she made me dresses and worked on other creative projects. My Bubbie Karen passed most recently, and her funeral was the first I attended. I remember her calm and stoic presence within the walls of her hospital room. The muted blue walls felt calm yet uneasy, blending with the grey Michigan winter sky that faintly appeared between the window blinds.

This work is part of an ongoing exploration of expanded printmaking and the use of water as both a subject and medium, utilizing flowing ink washes to record the feelings of relaxation and loss I feel in the moment. I draw on personal memories of sailing, weekly visits to the lake with my family, and moments of grief and recovery, utilizing printmaking and textile installation to translate these experiences into visual records of emotion and memory. I am creating this textile work on my step-grandma Jane’s vintage Singer sewing machine and from her large collection of sewing materials, as a way to connect with her and the creative presence she held in my life despite never having the opportunity to learn from her. My work incorporates sailing knots, most specifically the daisy chain knot, as a reference to the moments of connection that I choose to hold on to. During my Bubbie Karen’s memorial, knotting was referenced as a connection between the living and the departed, as a reminder that the deceased still live on through our shared memories and experiences. Their memorials began a repair of my connection with family that I previously felt disconnected from. The sharing of memories with loved ones became an act of retying these relationships to each other, building upon our love for those we lost.

This work stems from a longing for a sense of control over the unpredictable, yearning to hold onto the sunny days on the lake while remembering the stormy moments. While this work began from moments of grief and loss, I choose to focus on the memories I shared with them and the connections I hold with my family and community that will continue to grow. I aim to capture fleeting moments and the comfort of being surrounded by a body of water that represents the connection I hold with my family. Printmaking grounds my work in the language of layering and multiples, while installation allows these temporary moments to be expanded and transformed into spaces that can be entered, experienced, and shared.

BIO:
Adriane Berris is a printmaker and interdisciplinary artist from Georgia, currently residing in Athens, Ohio, where she is pursuing an MFA in printmaking at Ohio University. She received a BFA in drawing, painting, and printmaking from Georgia State University in 2024. Berris has become involved in mentoring young artists at the Dairy Barn Arts Center, LaGrange Art Museum, and Marietta/Cobb Museum of Art. She has also assisted classes in foundations, intro to printmaking, monotype, letterpress, bookmaking, etching, and relief at Georgia State University and Ohio University. Her work has been featured in group and juried exhibitions across the country, including the Delta National Small Prints Exhibition at the Bradbury Art Museum, Five Points Printmaking Exhibition at Five Points Art Center, and 22nd Mini Print International at the Menino Arts Center and The Ink Shop Printmaking Center. She is currently working towards her MFA solo exhibition, Feeling Blue, to be held at Majestic Galleries in April 2027, and will be teaching a youth intro to printmaking class at the Dairy Barn Arts Center in February 2027.