Artist Statement
Having learned to turn old bed sheets into braided rugs at the age of three, I was raised to believe that any cloth that came into our house had to pull its own weight. By that I mean whether it was clothing or a domestic textile, it would have a second use. Clothing would be mended and past down to at least two of my three younger siblings just as mine came from my 4 other brothers. Styles and trends would be rethought, and the end of “wearabilty” was not an end of life. Garments like worn bed sheets could be dismantled and used for patching, patchwork (not quilting, though I made little ones for my GI Joe and Johnny West), or strips for braiding. Sewing hems and returning buttons to the shirts they came off of, or putting them in the button jar for future use was the norm for me.
Over the past 30 years, as my art practice has gone from painting, to quilting, and to weaving, my raw material has become other peoples’ textiles, mostly gifted to me along with their stories. For those of us whose parents grew up in the Depression era of the 1930s, the three “Rs” Reuse, Reduce, Recycle were a way of life. Though in a family of 11, there really wasn’t a way to reduce and no excess.
As a visual artist I have considered myself a colourist who plays with Classical (symmetrical), Neo-classic (asymmetrical) balance, and collage to shift the eye. By piecing or weaving textiles together, I try to keep the viewer’s eyes moving, and to challenge the preconceptions about textiles or hand crafts. Thinking that these practices are easy is simply wrong. Using already used fabric that may be recognizable and evoke personal memories rather than making new cloth is important to my practice on more then one level. While it is reuse, and recycling, and possibly sustainable, it is Art. People lose and find themselves in the work.
I like to be told stories that my work evokes in the viewer. Textiles bring a whole new set of stories because they are part of everyone’s life. Textiles speak regardless of how they are used as medium or reference.
— Joe Lewis, January 15, 2026
Joe Lewis’ window exhibition, Second Hand Rose Revisited: A Triptych, is on view at PS707 from January 17, 2026 to February 15, 2026. Joe will be offering weaving workshops this spring/summer at PS707. Check the calendar for announcements, or subscribe to our newsletter.
