Artist Statement: Corbin Brashear

My mixed media needlefelted sculptures, masks and tapestries celebrate the whimsy and wildness of life.

I find my inspiration in the beautiful environment of the Siskiyou Mountains of Southern Oregon and Northern California, where I have lived for the past 25 years. These mountains have profoundly shaped who I am and what I create with my art.  I live part of the year outdoors on a wild, remote and deeply beautiful piece of land on the South Fork of the Smith River, about 13 miles from the Pacific Ocean, as the crow flies.  Living simply outdoors has allowed me to deepen my artistic expression and offered me the raw materials with which to work.

Each sculpture is created in my riverside “studio” among the alders. I walk the banks of the river or the beach daily in search of treasures such as driftwood, kelp, lichen and feathers, which I weave together with the wool, using a felting needle to sculpt and coax the elemental spirit into form.  I believe each piece of driftwood embodies both the story of the wood and the story of the water that has shaped it, and these stories in turn help to shape each sculpture’s unique personality.

 I get great joy from bringing these nature sprites and sculptures forth into the world. They are created with the intention of blessing your home and your life with the peace, energy and power of these wild and sacred places. 

For the last 15 years I have been leading needlefelting workshops, both locally and in Northern California, for both adults and kids. I love sharing this satisfying and whimsical art form with people, helping to guide my students to connect with their own inner creativity and sense of magic.

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Rogue Valley Messenger

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Sunny Wolf Charter School