Mary Balzer Buskirk (1931 – 2009) was an American textile artist known for being part of the

Mid-century modern Mid-century modern (MCM) is a movement in interior design, product design, graphic design, architecture and urban development that was present in all the world, but more popular in North America, Brazil and Europe from roughly 1945 to 197 ...

movement creating

fiber art Fiber (spelled fibre in British English; from ) is a #Natural fibers, natural or Fiber#Artificial fibers, artificial substance that is significantly longer than it is wide. Fibers are often used in the manufacture of other materials. The st ...

outside the applied textile tradition. Buskirk was born on March 11, 1931, in Mountain Lake, Minnesota. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from

Carleton College Carleton College ( ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Northfield, Minnesota, United States. Founded in 1866, the main campus is between Northfield and the approximately Carleton ...

and her Master of Fine Arts from the

Cranbrook Academy of Art The Cranbrook Academy of Art, a graduate school for architecture, art, and design, was founded by George Gough Booth and Ellen Scripps Booth in 1932. It is the art school of the Cranbrook Educational Community. Located in Bloomfield Hills, Mi ...

. In 2001 the

Monterey Museum of Art The Monterey Museum of Art (MMA) an art museum located in Monterey, California. It was founded in 1959 as a chapter of the American Federation of Arts. The Monterey Museum of Art collects, preserves, and interprets the art of California from th ...

held a retrospective entitled ''The Fabric of Experience: the woven art of Mary Balzer Buskirk''. Buskirk died in Monterey, California, on May 11, 2009. Her work is in the collection of the

the

San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles The San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles is an art museum in Downtown San Jose, California, USA. Founded in 1977, the museum is the first in the United States devoted solely to quilts and textiles as an art form. Holdings include a permanent coll ...

, the

Museum of Art and Design The Museum of Arts and Design (MAD), based in Manhattan, New York City, collects, displays, and interprets objects that document contemporary and historic innovation in craft, art, and design. In its exhibitions and educational programs, the ...

, among other venues.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Buskirk, Mary 1931 births 2009 deaths Textile artists from Minnesota 20th-century American women textile artists 20th-century American textile artists People from Mountain Lake, Minnesota