About
Tricia Waddell is the textile artist behind Studio Blkbird, based in Denver, Colorado at Tank Studios. Inspired by her degree in fashion design from the Fashion Institute of Technology and a variety of surface design workshops, her work combines painting and screen-printing with reactive dyes and resists to create visual textures inspired by abstract art, ceramics, and graphic design. She creates a wide range of projects from soft sculptures and wall panels, to design works for home and fashion, often incorporating mixed media and fiber elements.
Recent exhibitions include We Will Be Strange solo show at Understudy, The Moon in Her Mouth residency show at PlatteForum, and InFORMed Space: Perspectives in Sculpture at the Arvada Center. For upcoming shows, check out exhibitions, She’s a member of the Tilt West board, Surface Design Association, and an artist member of the Colorado Art Therapy Association. When she’s not in the studio, she works as an editor, writer, and storyteller creating content for artists, makers, and non-profits.
Artist Statement
I create soft sculptures and art works that are self-portraits and expressions of everything I keep hidden.
I am obsessed with the visceral combination of dye, cloth, texture, and form to hold memories and tell stories with deep emotional resonance. No matter how confident we appear on the outside, we all struggle with mental health challenges and negative self-talk. By exploring raw internalized emotions in my work, I want people to feel seen and less alone. Inspired by the beliefs in many cultures that objects and dolls can hold protective, healing, and magical powers as talismans, I strive to create intimate works that embody quiet emotional power and empathy.
I didn’t choose textiles and painting with dye as my medium. It chose me. It forces me to let go of control, embrace happy accidents and imperfections, get messy, work organically, and stay comfortable with being uncomfortable—aspects that are equally important to me as a human being and an artist.