By Natalie Taylor
Terry Ann Tomlinson is originally from New York, and she still maintains a residence in Woodstock, splitting her time between there, and San Miguel de Allende. She first received a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry at Hunter College, and subsequently worked for an international company for five years, developing flavors and scents, including scratch-n-sniff.
In Manhattan, on her way to work, she would pass the Art Students League (ASL), and decided to take some drawing classes. Drawing “captured her soul,” giving her a look at something different than what she had been doing. She attended a summer school session of the ASL in Woodstock, and after a month, quit her job and decided to study art.
In 1968, Terry moved to Woodstock—a year before the famous festival legitimized counterculture in America, and tilted the needle toward progressive thinking. For Terry, a product of Catholic schools, the event was as transformative as it was for the rest of the United States. It opened her to possibilities that she had not considered before.
She tried different modalities of art—classical drawing and painting, welding, and bronze sculptures. Challenging herself to become a “good drawer,” she eventually gained recognition from her professors, and beyond. She also became involved in abstraction, which she claims is a great way to train your eye. She likes the unknown, and abstract works generate a “feeling,” they transmit an emotion without the need for a realistic image.
Terry’s second husband was a builder of fine homes, and she became involved in interior design—kitchens, bathrooms—and found that she had a good eye for interiors, her contributions were well received by clients. Eventually she joined the board of the Woodstock Artist Association, and found archival material related to artists in the 1940s. Many Woodstock artists of that era had spent time in San Miguel de Allende, coming to Instituto Allende to take classes or teach. San Miguel was a familiar site to Woodstock residents, a real connection existed between the two cities. Terry went to the beaches of Mexico, but in 1995 she decided to give San Miguel a try. She was immediately enchanted by the city, and remembers going around collecting scraps and all kinds of trash, then creating collages. She felt inspired by the climate, the atmosphere, and the community.
Within a short time she found an empty lot, and used her design skills to create the perfect environment for a home and studio. While taking sculpture classes at the Instituto with Lothar Katzenbaum, working with wax, and casting bronze, she noticed that next door to his classroom was a papermaking class. Terry decided to give this a try. The process of making paper, which she had never attempted, fascinated her, and she realized this was the medium she wanted to work with.
The works that Terry produces with paper are magical. With mash, wires and other materials, she crafts amazing sculptures that have a sense of airiness, and allow the passage of light. The shadows that are cast, become part of the work. She learned how to make kozo paper—a thousand-year-old Japanese technique using Mulberry tree bark—even before she visited Japan. This paper product is strong, durable, and translucent, and is the perfect medium for her sculptures. But this is just one of the paper products she uses, there are many other papers on display, and the base material for manufacturing it is as varied as her imagination. For example, she makes paper out of marigold petals, which results in a gossamer fiber with the orange color of the flower.
Although her paper sculptures are de facto three-dimensional, she adds an additional dimension with her use of lights and shadows. Incorporating natural, or artificial light, whether from below, above, or through one of her sculptures, creates shadows that add to the beauty of the piece. Terry explains her love affair with paper: “The fragile and ephemeral qualities of paper are a reminder that all of life is impermanent…”
Every Wednesday, from 11am to 3pm, Terry opens the doors to her studio at Terraplen 29, giving the public an opportunity to view her many creations. Aside from the paper and bronze sculptures, there are drawings with graphite, pastels, ink and tape. It is a true delight to wander through her home, and see the myriad displays of sculptures, lamps, and other artifacts, incorporating different types of paper and other materials. You can also visit her site at: terryanntomlinson.con
Natalie Taylor: BA in English Lit and Journalism, Loyola University, Chicago, 1995. MFA in Creative Writing, Vermont College, Montpelier, VT, 1999. Published writer, editor, journalist. Spanish teacher in the US, English teacher in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Translator. www.natalietaylor.org Contact: tangonata@gmail.com
