Today we’d like to introduce you to Chellis Baird

Hi Chellis, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.

From a young age, I was drawn to the process of making and creating. My mother often recalled how I would spend hours in my room with paints and crafts, completely absorbed in projects. A local art teacher once said that this dedication was a sign of an artist. At that age, it wasn’t about how the art looked, but rather how much time and focus a child was willing to invest in it. That sentiment still holds true for me today. As I fast forward to the present, I recognize a deep internal need to create. When time constraints limit my ability to do so, I feel restless and find it hard to sleep. My work is often driven by a desire to solve something, whether it is perfecting a texture, exploring a color, or expressing a feeling.

I grew up in Spartanburg, SC, a town historically rooted in America’s 19th century textile industry boom. While the town still has active mills, it has since transformed into one of the fastest-growing cities in the USA. In addition to being exposed to various aspects of textiles as a child, my mother enrolled me in ballet class at the age of five. I’ve continued ballet into adulthood, and it remains a vital part of my artistic practice. Ballet helps me understand my relationship to gravity and informs the abstract gestures in my compositions. Currently, I have work on display at Slag & RX galleries in Chelsea, NY, with a piece deeply influenced by my two lifelong passions: textiles and dance.

My family has always been very artistic and supportive of my desire to attend art school. After receiving a BFA in textiles at Rhode Island School of Design, I moved to New York, where I worked as a fashion designer for Donna Karan, Ralph Lauren, and Tuleh, further deepening my love of fabric. At that time, my art practice was a personal pursuit, something I did in my spare time. Working in the fashion industry provided me with invaluable organizational skills, professional networks, and an in-depth understanding of textiles–knowledge that later became central to my art. This shift did not happen overnight. A defining moment occurred when I encountered a Barnett Newman painting at MoMA, which inspired me to explore my art practice more seriously. Eventually, I transitioned to freelance work allowing me the flexibility to take open studio classes at the Art Students League. Immersed in an artist community, I found the space to break away from design conventions and embrace a more exploratory approach to my work. This led me to stop using traditional canvases and instead experiment with the fundamental ingredients of painting, deconstructing and reconstructing materials into new forms.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?

Nothing truly worthwhile comes without its challenges. Over the years, I’ve faced many obstacles,but my dance practice has instilled in me a strong work ethic and an unwavering drive to keep moving forward. Even on the hardest days, I remind myself that today could be my last, so I make the most of it. Time,after all, is the greatest luxury.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?

My work is deeply rooted in the process of creation. The tactile evidence of the human hand is central to my practice, and I want viewers to experience this touch in my work. In an age dominated by slick screens, we’ve often become disconnected from true human connection. Through my abstract compositions, I invite the viewer to immerse themselves in the tactile .

What sets my work apart is my unique use of materiality, scale, and texture. Visually and intellectually, it carries a complexity that unfolds through a maze-like structure, weaving a new web of shapes. These structures reference traditional manufacturing techniques like weaving, knitting, printing making, embroidery, and draping–once passed down as precious skills by artisans, but now relegated to ‘craft’ in a world dominated by machines. = The ongoing dialogue between Fine Art and Craft is at the heart of my work. As Glenn Adams put it so eloquently: “The worker in handicrafts will ask himself if there are not ways by which the sense of beauty could be extended from the somewhat narrow fields of art to the broader field of human relations. And he comes to see that to ask the question is in part to answer it.” His juxtaposition of the layered past resurfacing in modern contexts makes my work, in a sense, an artifact.

Most recently, two of my red artworks were selected for the Nassau County Museum of Art’s exhibition: “Seeing Red: from Renoir to Warhol” on view through January 5, 2025. It’s a deep honor to be included in this exhibition alongside some of my favorite artists, including Rauchenberg, Warhol, Rothko, and Renoir.

We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?

I first made the connection between an arched doorway and the shape of a rainbow at an early age, signaling the emergence of my unique vision and ability to see connections in the world around me.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.chellisbaird.com
• Instagram: @chellisbaird
• Facebook: Chellis Stoddard Baird
• Youtube: @chellisbaird7843

Image Credits

First Image of my portrait: Atelier Arbach
2nd image of my face sitting on floor: Amy Spasoff
Images of artwork: Parker Calvert
Side profile image of me with paint brush & me with audience of people: Anna Usacheva