The Material Intelligence of Touch 2026

The Marks Art Center on the campus of The College of the Desert has 3 galleries. This group exhibit consisted of 62 artists from the members of TextileArtsla.org.‍ As the curator it was my goal to showcase the multiplicity of textile processes being utilized by the Textile Arts LA artists.
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Handwork: The Material Intelligence of Touch , A Textile Arts LA exhibition in collaboration with Craft in America: Handwork 2026, an exhibition curated by Carrie Burckle, at the Marks Center for the Arts, College of the Desert, Desert Springs, CA. 2026

Textile Arts LA presents Handwork: The Material Intelligence of Touch, an exhibition that honors the human hand as both a tool and a form of thought. Featuring work by Los Angeles fiber artists and makers from Textile Arts LA, the exhibition is presented in collaboration with Craft in America’s Handwork 2026 initiative.

The hand is our first language. Every gesture in textile work—pulling thread, weaving cloth, tying knots—holds a kind of thinking. Inspired by Ann Hamilton’s idea ‘my first hand is a sewing hand,’ this exhibition invites us to see how making by hand is an act of attention and connection. The artists of Textile Arts LA remind us that the handmade is not a relic of the past but a living dialogue between body, material, and community.”

Handwork: The Material Intelligence of Touch invites audiences to rediscover the quiet radicalism of the handmade—where gesture becomes language, and touch becomes knowing.

Liberty Worth, Fiberistas Collective, Debby Weiss

Fiberistas Collective: Alice Vogl, Connie Rohman, Gem Lagonoy, Elly Dallas

Anne M Bray, Cidne Hart, Elise Vazelakis

9x9 Contemporary Quilts & Containers 2025 co-curated with Jo Lauria

CARRIE BURCKLE 2026