Stina Baudin
Montréal, Que.
Stina Baudin, Revelations (detail), 2020. Cotton and linen, 110 x 56 cm. COURTESY OF THE ARTIST.
Studio: How would you describe your approach to your medium?
Stina Baudin: I spend a lot of time reading, thinking and looking at architectural forms in my environment. The thematics are usually tied to my identity, culture and politics of place. At times, the reading can provoke an idea. At other times, it can be a building or landscape. All these elements are at play in my praxis. I often need to sketch things out before making them. This can also take the form of a collage or a painting.
Stina Baudin, Revelations, 2020. Cotton and linen, 110 x 56 cm. COURTESY OF THE ARTIST.
S: What made you choose it?
SB: I’ve always enjoyed using my hands in the process of creation. I believe it is in my family. My mother sewed many of my clothes growing up, and two of my uncles are also makers. In my early 20s, I used to upcycle my vintage finds- reworking them constantly. Yet, weaving only entered my lexicon while I was teaching abroad in Asia. During a visit to Cambodia with a friend, I stumbled into a weaving collective and was immediately mesmerized. More intimate, deeper connections of weaving to ancestral ties followed shortly after, including memories of the basket weavers I saw in Haiti as a child.
Stina Baudin, Internal Algorithms (Listen to your ancestors, they have all the answers) [detail], 2022. Linen, cotton, cowrie shells and hair, 242cm (7.9ft with structure- 222cm without) Width: 100cm flat). COURTESY OF THE ARTIST.
S: How would you describe yourself, personally and professionally?
SB: I see myself as an artist, a dreamer and a maker. I want to learn “the how” but then think a lot about how to break rules. I’m really interested in how I can push the work to a new dimension or stretch an idea or thought. I love spinning concepts and trying new things, even if I have no idea where it is going to go. I love abstraction- I think there is a strong relationship between both the spiritual world and the abstract that cannot be defined through words alone.
I don’t think there is a line between my personal and professional self anymore- although there used to be. How I feel about making my art, is how I feel about living my life.
I am a curious, spiritual being who wants to just live and create freely …as myself.
Stina Baudin, Internal Algorithms (Listen to your ancestors, they have all the answers), 2022. Linen, cotton, cowrie shells and hair, 242cm (7.9ft with structure- 222cm without) Width: 100cm flat). COURTESY OF THE ARTIST.
S: What inspires you?
SB: I am inspired by my dreams, my people, my environment and the (untold/told) stories that exist in both reality and myth.
Stina Baudin, Women of the diaspora, 2020. Cotton, ink, and embroidery thread, 30 x 40 cm. COURTESY OF THE ARTIST.
S: What do you see as your contribution to the field of your craft?
SB: Textiles within Black communities have always been around. Yet, I haven’t met many Black Canadian-Caribbean artists who hand weaving large scale abstract tapestries as of yet - so I do consider my work to be unique in this sense.
Stina Baudin, Data studies: Caribbean- Canadian Geographies 86-96, 2020. Linen and cotton. COURTESY OF THE ARTIST.
S: What wisdom do you want to impart to younger makers?
SB: Remain curious, experimental and fearless.
Stina Baudin
w: stinabaudin.com
ig: @SSTEENAA
This article was published in the Fall/Winter 2023-2024 issue of Studio Magazine.
