Page 7 - MidWeek Central - Sep 22 2021

Michelle Schwen- gel-Regala is cool. No doubt about it. Her work is often inspired by the icy waters of Antarctica where she spent seven weeks on a 2017 National Science Foundation scuba diving ex- pedition, descending into the icy depths to capture the fauna of the sea in sketches, photos and video.
BY MARYANNE LONG
Mililani Resident Definitely Has ‘Cool’ Creativity
vey natural history. “Metalpoint drawing has
do conceptual renderings, us- ing optical mixing of many different fibers and colors to create gradients of my sub- jects — ice, water and air,” she says.
concerns about environmen- tal matters,” Schwengel-Re- gala shares.
exhibitions at the Down- town Art Center in succes- sion from Sept. 19 to Nov. 19. I will also be scheduling classroom visits to bring my Ice Core Crochet Project to local school kids. I was for- tunate this summer to attend School of Ice, a teacher-train- ing workshop at Oregon State University supported by the National Science Founda- tion.”
MaryAnne Long is an art- ist, art instructor, art collec- tor and curator. Reach her at malong@hawaii.rr.com or longlostart.weebly.com.
On a recent visit to the Hawai‘i State Art Museum, I saw one of her newest works, a textile triptych titled States of Matter: Ice, Water and Air, part of the Altered States ex- hibition, on display until the year’s end.
Michelle Schwengel-Regala peeks out from behind an ice wall at McMurdo Station, Antarctica, in 2017. PHOTO COURTESY K. CARLSON
“I hope that with each stitch, I inspire others to voice
For more information, visit the website, schwengala.com.
“For this series, I chose to
As for what she plans to do next, Schwengel-Regala says, “I’ll submit works for both the upcoming Handweavers Hui and Hawai‘i Craftsmen
SEPTEMBER 22, 2021 7
This Mililani resident has degrees in both science and science communication. After 15 years as a science illustrator, she moved to Ha- wai‘i and began using fiber art and metalpoint drawing to create 2D, 3D, and instal- lation art to explore and con-
become my gateway back to two-dimensional art. Scrap metal now becomes a poten- tial drawing stylus to add to my art supply cache, and my favorite ground is the water- proof notebook paper I began using decades ago for biolog- ical field work and science il- lustration,” she explains.
Note that she said many “different fibers.” I asked and found that things like al- paca, seacell and Australian possum fibers were knitted into the panels to represent various elements such as sed- iment, sheen on water and air pollution. The panels unravel to spell out her subject mat- ter with the unravelling ref- erencing the circumventions of environmental regulations which could lead to cata- strophic climate change.
Another facet of her fiber work is a collaborative proj- ect at Honolulu Museum of Art, as part of its Joyful Re- turn: Recover. It is an outdoor installation currently on dis- play at HoMA’s Palm Court- yard and is through January 2022. Her knitted brinicles, icicle-like sculptures inspired by her Antarctic expedition, are also currently on display at Cedar Street Galleries.
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