Art Spot: Hannah Paton of Lighthouse Fibre Studio

Hannah Paton’s weavings are on display at the Wolfville Memorial Library, 21 Elm Avenue, throughout the month of March.

In a few sentences, please tell us about yourself:
I’m a textile artist living in Halifax. I moved here in 2008 to study English at the University of King’s College, and after graduating I decided to take some classes at NSCAD University. I graduated with my BFA in textiles and fashion in 2019.

What is your artistic medium? How did you come to this style?
I’m a weaver. I initially studied photography at NSCAD, but I took a class in dyeing as an elective and fell in love with working with fabric. I was already an avid knitter, so I was eager to work with yarn in a class setting. I took “Intro to Weaving” and I immediately knew that sitting at a floor loom was where I wanted to be for the rest of my life.

Where do you work, and where can we find your work?
I have a home studio in Halifax with just enough space to weave in. My work can be found on my website, as well as on Instagram, Facebook, and Etsy.

At what point did you define yourself as an artist? At what time of day do you work on your art?
I started to take myself seriously as an artist about a year before I graduated. I was at the point where I was taking my ideas from vague concepts to finished bodies of work, and my confidence as an artist really grew as a result of that.

I have a day job, so most of my progress happens in the evenings and on days off. I value personal time as well, so it can sometimes feel like very slow going, but I’d rather take it slow and make work I’m proud of than rush to finish a piece I won’t be happy with.

Why art? Why your art? Why the Annapolis Valley?
My mom is also an artist, so I grew up with a lot of great art in the house, hanging out in my mom’s studio getting my foot cast in plaster or my picture taken, and going to gallery exhibitions. It took me a few tries to find my medium, but it was never a question for me of “why art?” but “which art?”

The collection I’m proudest of is my Seaspray collection. It’s a set of three dyed and woven blankets inspired by the coastal landscape of Nova Scotia. Although I didn’t grow up here, I came here often to visit my grandparents in the South Shore, so Nova Scotia has always been a part of my life.

For more about Hannah and her weavings, visit lighthousefibrestudio.com, or find her on Instagram (@lighthousefibrestudio), Facebook (Lighthouse Fibre Studio), and Etsy (LighthouseFibre).