St. Olaf College

Nancy Moore Bess

Contemporary
United States
b. b. 1943
View objects by this artist.

Nancy Moore Bess is a self-described “California farm girl.” Born in 1943, Bess did not discover her artistic calling until 1972, when she first learned how to weave baskets in New York City. From there, Bess would become intrigued by traditional Japanese packaging, and make her first trip to Japan in 1986. It was on this trip that she was first introduced to what would become her primary medium and topic of research: bamboo in Japan. After this trip she made many more, and would spend over thirty years honing her technique and publishing books about the importance of bamboo in Japan, and creating beautiful baskets.

Although Bess’s work has taken her from Japan to Hawaii to New York, her primary workplace is still her native California. According to her website, which also serves as an active blog, she has recently relocated her studio to Pasadena. Bess frequently teaches workshops, often on techniques she herself has just learned, and also gives talks about her books. She also actively encourages travel to Japan, which is still her main source of inspiration. Her art is typically made in a themed series, many of which have a deeper meaning that Bess is happy to describe on her website.

Madison Duran ’20
March 2019

Sources:

"Archive for Nancy Moore Bess.” Art Text Style,
www.arttextstyle.wordpress.com/tag/nancy-moore-bess/.
Moore Bess, Nancy. “About Nancy Moore Bess.” Nancy Moore Bess,
www.nancymoorebess.com/about.html.