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CAROLYN ZEITLER

Pine Needle Basketry

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CURRENT WORKS

I have been making round baskets for over 40 years.  It is the nature of the technique that the stitching be made in a circular pattern. Lately I have been searching "beyond the boundaries" to "not" make circles but to use the same technique and make half circles, waves and hands reaching into the air. Working with copper is a delightful contrast to the texture of the pine needles; it is hard, yet soft, it can be smooth or textured, it can be hammered and cut, giving shape to a form that the pine needles can follow and emphasize. I hope you enjoy this new direction.

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RISING

Hammered and folded copper in combination with Coulter Pine needles

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OBJET D'ART

A combination of hammered and patinated copper with an unusual treatment of pine needles.

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WAVE

A whimsical play with copper and pine needles.

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WAVE

A combination of hammered copper and pine needles.

Flying Fish

FLYING FISH

Coulter Pine Needles, raffia and lacquer lid.  9" x 4"

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BROKEN

Coulter Pine Needles, Raffia, Folded and Patined Copper 13" x 18" x 5

GALLERY

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EXHIBITIONS AND PUBLICATIONS

2023

SISTER CITY INTERNATIONAL ART EXCHANGE

OMACHI, JAPAN

THE PURSUIT OF IMPERFECTION

CAROLYN ZEITLER AND MIRKA KNASTER

MENDOCINO ART CENTER

2022

SISTER CITY INTERNATIONAL ART EXCHANGE

MENDOCINO ART CENTER

MENDOCINO, CALIFORNIA

WOVEN WORKS

GALLERY AT 48 NATOMA

FOLSOM, CALIFORNIA

2021

EMPTINESS-2021

BIAFARIN ONLINE EXHIBITION

FEATURED ARTIST FOR ART IN THE GARDENS

MENDOCINO BOTANICAL GARDENS

MENDOCINO, CALIFORNIA

MERGED II

D'ART CENTER

NORFOLK, VIRGINIA

2020

SMALL EXPRESSIONS

NORTHWIND ARTS CENTER

PORT TOWNSEND, WASHINTON

MEMBERS IN PRINT

NATIONAL BASKETRY ASSOCIATION

SUMMER 2020

MARIN SOCIETY OF ARTISTS : "ARTIST'S VISION"

SAN RAFAEL, CALIFORNIA

MENDOCINO ART CENTER

MEMBER'S EXHIBITION

2018

CRAFTFORMS 2018

24TH INTERNATIONAL JURIED EXHIBITION OF CONTEMPORARY FINE ART

WAYNE ART CENTER

WAYNE, PENNSYLVANIA

MEMBERS IN PRINT: VESSELS

NATIONAL BASKETRY ORGANIZATION 

SUMMER 2018 ISSUE 71

MENDOCINO ARTS MAGAZINE

FALL/WINTER 2018

COAST HIGHWAY COLLECTION

POINT ARENA, CALIFORNIA

2017

JAPANESE ALPS FESTIVAL, INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION, OMACHI,

JAPAN

ALL THINGS CONSIDERED 9: BASKETRY IN THE 21ST CENTURY, TACOMA, WASHINGTON

AIM: ARTISTS IN MENDOCINO GROUP SHOW, MENDOCINO, CALIFORNIA

2016
AIM: ARTISTS IN MENDOCINO GROUP SHOW, MENDOCINO, CALIFORNIA

2015

AIM: ARTISTS IN MENDOCINO, AMERICAN CRAFT WEEK, MENDOCINO, CALIFORNIA

OMACHI-MIASA/MENDOCINO ART EXCHANGE, MATSUMOTO AND OMACHI, JAPAN

2013
BY HAND: EXTRAORDINARY CRAFT IN CALIFORNIA, PENCE GALLERY, DAVIS, CALIFORNIA

2012
MIGRATIONS: KAAHC MAIN STREET GALLERY, KETCHIKAN, ALASKA

2011
OMACHI-MIASA/MENDOCINO ART EXCHANGE, MATSUMOTO AND OMACHI, JAPAN

2010
MORE THAN FIBER: BEST OF SHOW, GOGGLEWORKS CENTER FOR THE ARTS, READING, PENNSYLVANIA

2009 OMACHI-MIASA/MENDOCINO ART EXCHANGE, MATSUMOTO AND GALLERY IIZURA, JAPAN

2008 TEXTILES GROUP SHOW, MENDOCINO, CALIFORNIA

2007 PATHS AND CIRCLES, MENDOCINO ART CENTER, MENDOCINO, CALIFORNIA

2006 - 1992 POST RANCH GALLERY, BIG SUR, CALIFORNIA

1987 THE BASKETRY LINK, CARTWRIGHT STREET GALLERY, VANCOUVER, B.C.

1986 THE BASKETRY LINK TRAVELING EXHIBITION

1985 - 1983 HANDWORKS GALLERY, CARMEL, CALIFORNIA

1984 KANSAS - PARAGUAY CULTURAL EXCHANGE EXHIBITION, SPECIAL AWARD, WICHITA, KANSAS AND ASCENSION, PARAGUAY

1982 MARIETTA COLLEGE CRAFT NATIONAL, MARIETTA, OHIO

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ABOUT ME

I graduated from San Jose State University in 1976 with a degree in ceramics and weaving. When I began working as a U.S Forest Service fire look-out in Big Sur, California in 1979, I started making baskets with the native Coulter Pine needles that grow in the Los Padres National Forest. My baskets evolved as a kind of marriage, combining my two loves – clay and fiber.


I have worked exclusively with pine needles for over 40 years because they are so simplistic and straightforward. My only tools are my hands and a needle. The repetitive rhythm of the stitches becomes a kind of meditation. It’s amazing that one can take a material as mundane as a pine needle and create something that celebrates its beauty and strength. There are inherent limitations to the medium that create a challenge to search beyond its boundaries for something that reflects both the tradition of craft and the innovation of art.


It is my hope that when people look at my baskets they will begin to look at pine needles and the beauty of trees in a whole new way.

CONTACT ME

Thank you for your interest. For any inquiries or commission requests, please contact me.

15201 Seadrift Ave. Box 98 Caspar, California 95420

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CLASSES

Feather River Art Camp

Quincy, California

June 1-8

2024

Create a basket using the long-needled Coulter pines which grow in the Santa Lucia Mountains of the Los Padres. With just raffia, a darning needle and pine needles, learn how to create a unique design as you experiment using four distinctive stitches. Students will complete a unique and fragrant vessel and have the skills and knowledge to continue exploring this art form.

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