In my meticulous woven sculptures and installations I use plant materials that I forage locally to inspire a sense of wonder while examining human relationship with nature. Through my work, wood, bark, and grasses morph from raw material into carefully considered weavings in a single sculpture, inviting the viewer to see the process of transformation firsthand. Strips of birch bark transform into a heart, highlighting a connection between plant and human bodies. Weaving seems to emerge from beneath the bark of a fallen log. Interlaced fiber reveals itself to be language upon closer glance. It is important to me to create a sense of mystery and wonder in my pieces- inspiring the viewer to ask how it is made.
In my newest work I draw on the traditional basketry techniques and plant materials of my Czech, Scottish, and German ancestry, reinventing them in works that reference my own genealogical story while addressing broader themes, including the interwoven histories of plants and people.Through exploring these ancient material traditions I examine my place in the world and ask viewers to consider their own relationships to plants and to nature as a whole.
Katie Grove is an artist, educator, and author whose passion is to inspire both viewers of her art and students in her basketry classes to build a relationship with the plants growing around them. She teaches wild basketry from her studio in the beautiful Rondout Valley of New York State and enjoys a robust studio practice that merges traditional basketry techniques with sculpture. Katie holds an MFA in Interdisciplinary Art from the NOMAD program at University of Hartford and a BFA in Printmaking from SUNY New Paltz. She is the author of Weaving Wild Baskets, published by Storey Press in Spring 2026 and of An Ethic of Care in Basketry: Weaving with Invasive Vines published in an anthology by Missouri Botanical Garden Press in 2025.
Website: www.katiegrovestudios.com
Instagram: @katiegrovebasketry