Kim Leckey has a degree in fashion design from Ryerson university which gave her the foundational introduction to the fiber world. This new style of artwork seemed to explode out from the experience of leaving Canada for the warmer shores of Central America where she fell for the oceans spell, learning to surf and where being in the water would be her daily medicine.
Without her sewing machine and sketchbook, Kim explored other mediums. She found rope that the artisans used to create the hammocks they sold and practiced knots in her down time. The meditation of the motions of tying knots in order to create a piece of work was very satisfying. Living in Northern California she explored amazing fiber shops filled with locally spun wools and yarns, expanding her fiber art knowledge and immersing herself into the weaving culture, and learning from local artists.
Working her way up the coast, Kim now finds herself in the small community of Ucluelet, on Vancouver island where she still gets to surf every day and explore the moss covered, acidic green forests of the Pacific Rim National Park.
She has expanded into her own style of reflecting the textures of nature through the medium of fiber, giving the viewer a glimpse into an underwater ocean world, a lichen covered alder grove, or the shoreline at low tide.
In this new collection of work, Kim has joined forces with the Pacific Rim chapter of Surfrider to collect marine debris discarded from the fishing agricultural industry to breathe new life into this beautiful material. She collects, sorts, cleans, and cuts pounds of material and reworks them into art pieces in this new style of wall hanging. Through her work, Sea Woven wishes to inspire folks to think about new ways in use old material.
