CAROLYN ZEITLER
Pine Needle Basketry
CURRENT WORKS
I have been making round baskets for over 40 years. It is the nature of the technique that the stitching be made in a circular pattern. Lately I have been searching "beyond the boundaries" to "not" make circles but to use the same technique and make half circles, waves and hands reaching into the air. Working with copper is a delightful contrast to the texture of the pine needles; it is hard, yet soft, it can be smooth or textured, it can be hammered and cut, giving shape to a form that the pine needles can follow and emphasize. I want the result to reflect a sense of awe and beauty of the materials without revealing the effort that it took to create it.
RISING
Hammered and folded copper in combination with Coulter Pine needles
OBJET D'ART
A combination of hammered and patinated copper with an unusual treatment of pine needles.
WAVE
Coulter Pine Needles, Hammered Copper and Raffia
NARROW PASSAGE
A combination of hammered copper and pine needles.
FLYING FISH
Coulter Pine Needles, raffia and lacquer lid. 9" x 4"
BROKEN
Coulter Pine Needles, Raffia, Folded and Patined Copper 13" x 18" x 5
GALLERY
 |  |  |
|---|---|---|
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |
EXHIBITIONS AND PUBLICATIONS
2024
COAST HIGHWAY ART COLLECTIVE
POINT ARENA, CALIFORNIA
MENDOCINO SISTER CITY ART EXCHANGE
MENDOCINO ART CENTER
MENDOCINO, CALIFORNIA
2023
SISTER CITY INTERNATIONAL ART EXCHANGE
OMACHI, JAPAN
THE PURSUIT OF IMPERFECTION
CAROLYN ZEITLER AND MIRKA KNASTER
MENDOCINO ART CENTER
2022
SISTER CITY INTERNATIONAL ART EXCHANGE
MENDOCINO ART CENTER
MENDOCINO, CALIFORNIA
WOVEN WORKS
GALLERY AT 48 NATOMA
FOLSOM, CALIFORNIA
2021
EMPTINESS-2021
BIAFARIN ONLINE EXHIBITION
FEATURED ARTIST FOR ART IN THE GARDENS
MENDOCINO BOTANICAL GARDENS
MENDOCINO, CALIFORNIA
MERGED II
D'ART CENTER
NORFOLK, VIRGINIA
2020
SMALL EXPRESSIONS
NORTHWIND ARTS CENTER
PORT TOWNSEND, WASHINTON
MEMBERS IN PRINT
NATIONAL BASKETRY ASSOCIATION
SUMMER 2020
MARIN SOCIETY OF ARTISTS : "ARTIST'S VISION"
SAN RAFAEL, CALIFORNIA
MENDOCINO ART CENTER
MEMBER'S EXHIBITION
2018
CRAFTFORMS 2018
24TH INTERNATIONAL JURIED EXHIBITION OF CONTEMPORARY FINE ART
WAYNE ART CENTER
WAYNE, PENNSYLVANIA
MEMBERS IN PRINT: VESSELS
NATIONAL BASKETRY ORGANIZATION
SUMMER 2018 ISSUE 71
MENDOCINO ARTS MAGAZINE
FALL/WINTER 2018
COAST HIGHWAY COLLECTION
POINT ARENA, CALIFORNIA
2017
JAPANESE ALPS FESTIVAL, INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION, OMACHI,
JAPAN
ALL THINGS CONSIDERED 9: BASKETRY IN THE 21ST CENTURY, TACOMA, WASHINGTON
AIM: ARTISTS IN MENDOCINO GROUP SHOW, MENDOCINO, CALIFORNIA
2016
AIM: ARTISTS IN MENDOCINO GROUP SHOW, MENDOCINO, CALIFORNIA
2015
AIM: ARTISTS IN MENDOCINO, AMERICAN CRAFT WEEK, MENDOCINO, CALIFORNIAOMACHI-MIASA/MENDOCINO ART EXCHANGE, MATSUMOTO AND OMACHI, JAPAN
2013
BY HAND: EXTRAORDINARY CRAFT IN CALIFORNIA, PENCE GALLERY, DAVIS, CALIFORNIA
2012
MIGRATIONS: KAAHC MAIN STREET GALLERY, KETCHIKAN, ALASKA
2011
OMACHI-MIASA/MENDOCINO ART EXCHANGE, MATSUMOTO AND OMACHI, JAPAN
2010
MORE THAN FIBER: BEST OF SHOW, GOGGLEWORKS CENTER FOR THE ARTS, READING, PENNSYLVANIA
2009
OMACHI-MIASA/MENDOCINO ART EXCHANGE, MATSUMOTO AND GALLERY IIZURA, JAPAN
2008 TEXTILES GROUP SHOW, MENDOCINO, CALIFORNIA
2007 PATHS AND CIRCLES, MENDOCINO ART CENTER, MENDOCINO, CALIFORNIA
2006 - 1992 POST RANCH GALLERY, BIG SUR, CALIFORNIA
1987 THE BASKETRY LINK, CARTWRIGHT STREET GALLERY, VANCOUVER, B.C.
1986 THE BASKETRY LINK TRAVELING EXHIBITION
1985 - 1983 HANDWORKS GALLERY, CARMEL, CALIFORNIA
1984 KANSAS - PARAGUAY CULTURAL EXCHANGE EXHIBITION, SPECIAL AWARD, WICHITA, KANSAS AND ASCENSION, PARAGUAY
1982 MARIETTA COLLEGE CRAFT NATIONAL, MARIETTA, OHIO
ABOUT ME
I graduated from San Jose State University in 1976 with a degree in ceramics and weaving. When I began working as a U.S Forest Service fire look-out in Big Sur, California in 1979, I started making baskets with the native Coulter Pine needles that grow in the Los Padres National Forest. My baskets evolved as a kind of marriage, combining my two loves – clay and fiber.
I have worked exclusively with pine needles for over 40 years because they are so simplistic and straightforward. My only tools are my hands and a needle. The repetitive rhythm of the stitches becomes a kind of meditation. It’s amazing that one can take a material as mundane as a pine needle and create something that celebrates its beauty and strength. There are inherent limitations to the medium that create a challenge to search beyond its boundaries for something that reflects both the tradition of craft and the innovation of art.
It is my hope that when people look at my baskets they will begin to look at pine needles and the beauty of trees in a whole new way.
CONTACT ME
Thank you for your interest. For any inquiries or commission requests, please contact me.
15201 Seadrift Ave. Box 98 Caspar, California 95420
CLASSES
Feather River Art Camp
Quincy, California
June 7-14
2025
Create a basket using the long-needled Coulter pines which grow in the Santa Lucia Mountains of the Los Padres. With just raffia, a darning needle and pine needles, learn how to create a unique design as you experiment using four distinctive stitches. Students will complete a unique and fragrant vessel and have the skills and knowledge to continue exploring this art form.
