Succeeding as a fine artist while running your own business may not sound like the easiest of juggling acts, but it's one that Noelle Sharp seems to be pulling off with aplomb.
Every morning she wakes around 5:30, has coffee, and then, quite simply, gets going. "Either straight into the studio, or I will take my dog for a trail run or hike then come back to the studio. I like working in the early morning when it is quiet; my mind and body are rested," she tells Artspace.
Born and raised in Utah and Montana, Sharp has lived and made work in California, Utah, Montana, Manhattan, Navajo Nation, Detroit, Chicago and Iceland. She Received her BFA from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 2012. While still in school she took a weaving class while getting her degree in fiber material studies.
"I became fascinated with the history and complexity of weaving, and that eventually led me to starting my own business. I developed a line of textiles and accessories and realized that there was a market for hand woven goods in the U.S.."
Her business,
Aporta
, now manufactures textiles and accessories and works with handmade goods and art from artists around the world.
"The business of being an artist can be soul sucking in the sense that your practice will become influenced by the possible outcome of making money from your creations," she tells us, but being able to support oneself from their practice is the ultimate goal, for myself at least.”
"I have always made, have always made art, have always been making things. I also don’t feel the need to specifically call myself an artist. Making art is such a deep part of my being, my soul, my way of interacting in the world, it is just one aspect of who I am."
We caught up with Sharp this week to learn more about the beautiful works she is offering as part of Artspace’s Artist Direct program, which sees art made available to Artspace readers straight from the artist's studio.
NOELLE SHARP - Spirit Slivers, 2023
What are the things current things going on that are inspiring you?
Art inspired by nature, the changing global seasons, the relationships of materials such as marble mixed with wool, the roles that women play in society, the relationships of emotions (learned and inherited) and how society will break free from damaging pressure and norms.
How would you describe your work to someone who has never seen it?
Natural, textural and rhythmic.
NOELLE SHARP - Shape Systems #17, 2022
Could you describe your process, or a typical working day?
I wake up early, around 5:30, have coffee then get going. Either straight into the studio or I will take my dog for a trail run or hike then come back to the studio. I like working in the early morning when it is quiet, my mind and body are rested and if it’s the summer the early mornings are still cool.
If I have painting projects started, I will lay paint down first so the drying process can start. If my looms are dressed, I have to have more than an hour available to sit down and weave. It takes that long for me to get into a meditative rhythm to be able to keep the flow going.
Noelle Sharp at work in her studio. Photo courtesy the artist
What are the bits of being a fine artist you struggle with?
Any time you mix money with pleasure, with something that brings you joy, it can complicate the process and desire to continue. The business of being an artist can be soul sucking in the sense that your practice will become influenced by the possible outcome of making money from your creations. But being able to support oneself from their practice is the ultimate goal, for myself at least. Every job has its downsides and for working artists it is maintaining artistic integrity while also marketing yourself as a business. It can be incredibly challenging.
NOELLE SHARP - The Things Coming Your Way #1, 2023
Tell us a little about some of your works on Artspace
The ongoing Shape System series was born from a desire to break free from rigid structures in my practice. Especially since the weaving process involves so much planning. I wanted to be able to sit down and make something without being controlled by materials and machinery. So I created a system of rules that would guide me into randomness. And the results are beautiful.
Noelle Sharp's studio. Photo courtesy the artist
What made you want to become an artist?
I don’t feel like ‘being’ an artist was anything I ever aspired to be or call myself. I have always made, have always made art, have always been making things. I also don’t feel the need to specifically call myself an artist. Making art is such a deep part of my being, my soul, my way of interacting in the world, it is just one aspect of who I am.
NOELLE SHARP - A Message Worth Listening To #3, 2022
What was your earliest art creation?
As a kid I loved to collage. I would decide on a theme for every month and the outside of my door to my bedroom would be that theme. So for example, one month would be an ocean theme, the next wolves; Halloween the next. I also got really into making. Kleenex ghosts, hundreds of them, hanging from my ceiling all year round.
Noelle Sharp's studio. Photo courtesy the artist
How has your work changed over the course of your career?
Just as people change, my work has as well. I spent a few years as a sound artist in Chicago making work with MAXMSP then began to experiment with sound and textiles. Ultimately textiles captured my attention and weaving became a huge part of my identity. I had never laid eyes on a loom until art school and when I did it was as if an old part of me was meeting an old friend.
Noelle Sharp
My career has been divided between two worlds: the interior design world and the gallery world. Which has been challenging to navigate at times. And just as I don’t feel the need to completely identify or call myself an artist, I also don’t feel the need to be dedicated to one of these worlds. I have always found it funny to go into a gift shop of a modern art museum and see the collection of objects that have been placed in the ‘gift shop’ and not the actual museum for display.
Who makes these decisions? And why? I often find my work placed between both. These days my work feels very influenced by nature. By the natural world. And the systems that exist in nature.
NOELLE SHARP - You know where you are, 2023
Do you collect art yourself or something that you consider to be art?
I am really drawn to different aspects of cultural objects and art. Years ago I fell in love with older flat wooden carved Kachina cradle dolls that I buy directly from the territory they are made in (Hopi). I am also really drawn to art with immense textural aspects such as print making and of course textiles. I am very specific in owning and buying things, my house is minimal in the sense that I don’t want to be tied down to a large number of things. What I do own has deep meaning to me.
What are you working on at the moment?
I recently returned from a three-week artist residency on a ship in the Arctic, so my studio is full of arctic mud, rocks, drawings, photograph, sea-soaked wool and writings. I am also exploring the relationship between natural elements and the process of digitally weaving on jacquard looms. Exploring how natural textures and objects can be represented digitally then brought back to a physical space of textiles which is fascinating to me.
See more of Noelle Sharp's work on her Artspace Artist Direct artist page here.
NOELLE SHARP - Shape Systems Drawing #9, 2022
NOELLE SHARP - A Message Worth Listening To #1, 2023
Noelle Sharp's studio. Photo courtesy the artist
