"Shinto: Junihitoe"

Alison Swann-Ingram and Carl Johnson

"I believe that the land is sentient and my work is a visceral exploration of this quiet bedrock energy."

Alison Swann-Ingram has spent much of her life living in wild and beautiful places. These experiences left her with an intimate and visceral connection to the earth, and it is the textures and rhythms of nature that form the underlying theme of much of her work.

Often melding "character" woods with other materials such as copper and stone, the artist crafts her pieces using a combination of traditional woodworking tools and techniques such as steam bending, carving and pyrography.

After immigrating to the United States in 1987, and studying at the Oregon College of Arts and Craft, Swann-Ingram made a living designing and building one-of-a-kind pieces of furniture. She has studied and trained with Richard Ford, Grit Laskin and Betty Scarpino.