Multi-Material Mexican-American Ceramic Fiber Wall Art

Nicole McLaughlin creates eye-catchingly colorful wall décor using a combination of ceramics, embroidery, and hanging fibers in Mexican folk patterns. She was born and raised in Massachusetts, but spent a large chunk of her young life in Mexico.

Identifying as a Mexican-American, her wall décor is inspired by her multicultural heritage and her fond memories of visiting her maternal side of the family in Mexico. Her multi-material mixture combines the cultural dichotomies of both worldly heritages.

Her combination of ceramics, typically used as functional pieces, decorated with fibers in Mexican motifs, changes their purpose. Her works have transformed into decorative wall art, to be showcased as a colorful blending of her heritages. The fibers hang eloquently on rigid vessels adding both movement and foundation to their aesthetic. This is not unlike her families background and the merging of two cultures.

These subtle representations with vivid, unmistakably Mexican in origin components, pay homage to the multi-ethnic and multi-artistic metaphorical melting pot found in Mexico and in the United States alike.