Anastasia Greer is an artist living and working in Marquette, Michigan. Anastasia takes a multimedia approach to painting through the incorporation of textiles which she hand dyes, sews, and stretches. Eliciting a graphic representation of language, Anastasia's work functions as a humorous and playful set of runes provoking curiosity and wonder.
Anastasia received her Master of Fine Arts in Visual Studies at Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland, OR in 2016. Anastasia is based in Marquette, MI and her work has been featured at the Oregon Museum of Contemporary Craft, Oregon Contemporary, Food52, Sight Unseen, and Nationale, among others.
Artist Statement
My work centers on creating abstract visual narratives drawn from mundane day-to-day activities, interactions, and the surrounding spaces that play in my mind. Often paired with humorous titles, these pieces invite moments of levity while reflecting on the rhythms and repetitions of everyday life. Bright colors, repeated shapes, and playful naming become tools for storytelling, offering an accessible entry point into the work.
Much of my practice is rooted in an awareness of time — moving slowly, noticing small shifts, and reflecting on personal experience as it unfolds. I take a zero-waste approach to these compositions, piecing together remaining materials from the stretched works and sewing them onto paper. These fragments form patchwork surfaces that incorporate gradients and subtle color and shape relationships, suggesting unexpected transformation and movement. Making this work provides space to release tension and stress while allowing curiosity, play, and reflection to emerge.
In this work, I play with dyeing and sewing raw silk to investigate color, texture, and shape through an intuitive, process-driven approach. I respond to the way dye moves through the silk, embracing the unpredictable patterns that develop as it settles into the fibers. Sewing acts as a quiet counterpoint to this fluidity, introducing structure, rhythm, and intention within the softness of the material. Through this interplay, the work offers a gentle pause from the pace of everyday life.
www.anastasiagreer.com
How has the environment you grew up in affected your art practice?
I grew up with artist parents—my mom was a quilter, and my dad was a painter. They encouraged me to experiment with different mediums and styles, which led me to my current practice—quilting and painting!
If your artwork was a mirror, what would it reflect?
My artwork would reflect my humor, curiosity, and wonder in my surroundings.
What is the most difficult part (or your least favorite part) of your process?
My least favorite part of my process is stretching and stapling the raw silk on the wood panels. It’s so tricky to get it just right. Luckily, I love to see how the fabric stretches and the shapes distort once finished.
Pursuing ‘artist’ as a career is not for the faint of heart. What is the most rewarding aspect of this pursuit?
It’s a lot of work! The most rewarding aspect is sharing my practice and ideas with people around me. It’s also what I love most about other artists.
If your art is in a lineage of artists working within similar veins, who would be part of your lineage and why?
Anni Albers! Like Albers, my textile work is a mix of contemporary art and traditional craft, along with a lot of experimentation with color.
