About the Artist

Jan Hopkins (Everett) received a 2010 GAP to offset costs of attending a biennial conference in Kuching, Malaysia for basketry and textiles. Hopkins is a basket-maker working with organic alternative materials that are not used in traditional art such as grapefruit peel, cantaloupe peel, sturgeon skin and lotus pods. She experiments with organic materials that are in abundance and not in danger of over-harvest or over-use. Hopkins creates primarily figurative female sculptures. Throughout her career, she has been inspired by traditional craft and textiles.

Jan received a 2007 GAP for financial support to cover shipping, materials and promotion for an installation to be exhibited at SOFA Chicago in November 2007. As a fiber artist/basket maker, Hopkins has expanded her practice to include alternative materials such as orange and grapefruit peels, lotus pods, lunaria seed pods and cantaloupe peels, in addition to traditional basket making materials. “There are often restrictions on traditional basket materials in order to protect them from over harvest. I continue to work with traditional materials, but have included alternative materials… that are not restricted and that I can collect in abundance. I am obsessed with pushing the boundaries with these materials and am currently working toward making large pieces set in environments.”