Artist Statement/Bio

Allison Tunis is a Bachelor of Fine Arts graduate from the University of Alberta. She works almost exclusively in cross-stitch and fiber arts. Her work questions our society’s obsession with the aesthetic and female stereotypes, while exploring her own struggle with body image issues. She has had her work featured in a number of media articles, and is featured in the book Hoopla: The Art of Unexpected Embroidery, by Leanne Prain.

Her pieces focus on our obsession with body image, social aesthetics and the conscious and unconscious desire to be considered desirable. These works develop a discourse around cultural conditioning, but also are a way for her to explore own personal feelings of disgust and attraction with her own body, and her obsession with the superficial. The technique of cross-stitch emphasizes the obsessive quality of the work, and also reinforces the concept of cultural stereotypes of femininity.