Personal Work

Portraits with Carolyn Hazel Drake

— Tim Trautmann
Carolyn Hazel Drake, a tattooed woman with short dark hair and glasses, sits barefoot at a work table in her art studio in Portland, Oregon, focused on a needlework or fiber art project. Thread cones, scissors, and craft supplies are arranged on the table beside a bright adjustable desk lamp. Her black-and-white dog Edith stands at her feet beneath the table. The studio is filled with framed artwork, books, storage crates, and a large red textile wall hanging depicting a striped tiger. Shelving units, a rolling cart, and stacked bins line the walls of the creative, well-used workspace.

In the studio with textile and ceramic artist Carolyn Hazel Drake. Carolyn works with textiles and ceramics to craft detailed stitched collages that intend to evoke out-of-body meditative states. Her work references devotional objects and familiar folk tales shrouded in mystery.

When Carolyn is not working on her art, she teaches it at Arizona State University School of Art.