Cleveland Institute of Art student will instruct two free workshops, host pop-up exhibition surrounding felting

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 22, 2025

CLEVELAND—Lillian Gomez, a junior studying Sculpture + Expanded Media at the Cleveland Institute of Art, is collaborating with Praxis Fiber Workshop to hold two free felting workshops and host a pop-up exhibition. Gomez is an interdisciplinary artist who focuses on textural qualities and often references nature and the body in her work.

The first workshop will teach the process of wet felting by creating three-dimensional vessels using resists. It takes place from 10am to 2pm Sunday, May 4. The second workshop will focus on needle felting through experimentation with detail-work and fiber density. It will take place from 10am to 2pm Sunday, May 11. Both workshops are free and materials will be provided. Space is limited, and online registration is required via Praxis Fiber Workshop.

Shear Bliss is an open-call pop-up exhibition showcasing a diverse array of wet- and needle-felted artworks. It is a celebration of the labor-intensive and rewarding process of interlocking wool fibers. Felt is the oldest man-made, non-woven textile and it is deeply embedded within our human history. By making intimate connections with our materials, we put our own energy and spirit into our work.

Shear Bliss will be on view June 13–15 at Praxis Fiber Workshop (15301 Waterloo Road, Cleveland). An opening reception will be held from 5 to 7 pm Friday, June 13. Artists are invited to submit up to two felted works to Shear Bliss by Friday, May 16. Local drop off/pick up only for accepted artworks.

“I chose to do this project because I want to share my knowledge about the process of felting with our regional community. I want to celebrate the beauty of the labor-intensive processes of felting by exhibiting a wide variety of felted artworks,” Gomez says. “Wet felting, in particular, is significant to me because the process is very tactile and even magical in a way. With soap, water and agitation, we can create dense, non-woven cloth out of loose wool fibers with just our bare hands! I hope that participants can use the information and skills they have learned in the workshops to further explore the medium of wool and incorporate felting into their own art practices.”

To learn more about Gomez's work, follow her on Instagram at @thecreationwitch.

Gomez organized this project through CIA's Creativity Works program, which is made possible by the generous support of the Fenn Educational Fund and the G.R. Lincoln Family Foundation. Creativity Works is a self-initiated internship program with the goal of supporting a student's professional development. Participating students create proposals that align with their long-term professional goals.

Contact

Cleveland Institute of Art
Michael C. Butz, Director of College Communications + External Relations
mcbutz@cia.edu / 216.421.7404

Lillian Gomez, junior in Sculpture + Expanded Media
lrgomez@cia.edu

Cleveland Institute of Art

The Cleveland Institute of Art is a private, nonprofit college of art and design that has been the training ground for countless students who have gone on to make important contributions to the fields of creativity and innovation since it opened in 1882 as the Western Reserve School of Design for Women. Its students have designed internationally recognized products, their artwork has been exhibited in major museums and private collections around the world, and their entertainment media has been enjoyed by audiences and game players for generations. It enrolls about 600 students nationally and internationally and has a faculty of about 100 full-time and adjunct members, all of whom are practicing artists, designers and scholars.

Praxis Fiber Workshop

Praxis Fiber Workshop builds the international network of fiber artists and makers through classes, workshops, residencies, and collaborative projects that teach the art form and demonstrate how fiber art can be used to build healthy, resilient, and inclusive communities.