The Power of the Moiré Effect

Cathy Jacobs harnesses the captivating effect of motion within immovable objects, using screens to create wavy patterns.

1. Briefly describe the work you do.

I am essentially making installations of overlapping colored screens for the viewer to look through. Sometimes I hand-weave large linen screens on a floor loom, other times I paint and cut up industrially woven screens. I layer the screens in ways so that the colors of the screens mix optically. I often describe the woven works as 3-dimensional color field paintings. The artworks visually vibrate because our eyes cannot make sense of the fine lines and layered grids. From further away, the layered woven panels often look like glass. A lot of the optical play can only happen when seen in person.

2. What or who inspires your work and how has that influenced both your work and your identity as an artist?

The French Impressionists of the late 19th century — Monet, Degas, Gauguin, Seurat, Van Gogh, etc. — have been most influential in my development as an artist and they’ve given me lessons in how to use and see color. Next and not far behind is the book “Interaction of Color” by Josef Albers. Studying that book put me on a course of thinking even more critically about color. It was not until I began studying weaving and textiles as a grad student that I learned that Joseph Albers’ wife, Anni Albers, was a very important weaver. Of course, she was! Now, it makes total sense that studying color theory should ultimately lead me to weaving and working with fabric as a medium.

3. As you reflect on your artistic journey, could you describe the evolution of your identity as an artist and how it has exceeded your initial expectations?

I could not possibly imagine that I would be making the kind of work that I do now. I always thought that oil painting would be the medium for my artistic work. But I had been, for many years, pushing myself to create something that I had not seen other artists doing before. I guess, if you keep on a path long enough, you will find that you have gone a long way from where you started. I am quite pleased to be able to work with beautiful colors every day, be it through weaving, through painting screens, or through photographing my own artwork.

4. How do you view the significance of your contribution to contemporary art in a world that is increasingly shaped by technology?

No matter how much time is spent in virtual reality, I am convinced that we still need to experience beauty in our daily lived environments — something that can be interacted with in real time and space. I strive to make artwork that is thoughtful and beautiful, something that will make me, the viewer, gasp in delight. That experience happens in-person more often than virtually.

5. How do you see the future of your art and the art world evolving in the coming years?

It’s truly a blessing that I can create something in Michigan and minutes later, show it to someone in Brazil via technology. I cannot say how the art world will be evolving in this very connected environment we live in. But I do see how some constraints of this digital world affect my own work. I’ve come to the conclusion that I have not finished making an artwork unless I have already photographed it with an SLR camera and uploaded the files to a computer. The artwork doesn’t exist unless it’s digitized! So, there is a lot of pressure on me, the artist, to make work that is very photogenic. There is a tension between making artwork I know can be photographed and making artwork that is breathtaking when seen in person, but cannot be captured with photography.

6. Get inspired!

INSTAGRAM: @cathyjacobs_art
WEBSITE: cathyjacobs.com
REPRESENTED BY: Flavio Dolce Art Projects - New Orleans, LA, Embrace Creatives - Detroit, MI, State of the Arts Gallery - Sarasota, FL