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With nature as my muse
and creativity as my fuel,
hope from earth is my
co-creation with her to
spread hope, light, and
love to the world.

Biography

Hope Cross is a Master's level Therapist who resides in the North Georgia Mountains. After her husband was diagnosed with ALS, Hope quit her job as a therapist to become his full-time caregiver. At the same time of caregiving, Hope needed a creative outlet to help her cope with the stress of being a sole provider 24/7. Exploring different mediums of painting and other creative outlets, Hope maintained her mental health while caring for her husband for nine years. Losing her husband in April of 2020, Hope is now on a journey of self-discovery to what her identity is without the role of caring for the person she loves. She has dedicated herself fully to her many crafts and is inspired by the nature surrounding her. 


Artist Statement. 

I am a multidisciplinary artist who receives my inspiration from nature. Growing up in a family of photographers, I am naturally drawn to picking up my camera to capture any beauty I see around me; which in Mineral Bluff, GA, is a lot! My grandmother was a wheat weaver and jewelry maker, and she would make the most incredible art pieces to sell at her store and art shows. I marveled at her talent when meandering through her work and draw on her as inspiration in my weavings today. I use dried flowers and other bits of nature and a variety of natural fibers to create unique weavings. Also, being a painter, I often make weavings utilizing old paint brushes and palettes. Painting is one of my greatest pleasures that I find meditative. I have explored many mediums and saw my most growth using oils, pigments, and watercolors. As a lover of flowers and being a curious creative, I explore with natural flower dyeing and turn flowers into paints. This exploration is heavily seen in my work. 

Description of my Work

I make abstract nature pieces that capture the wild and whimsy way I see the world around me. I am highly motivated by the birds I see in my day-to-day life and the trees I, fortunately, live amongst. My style is to capture the messy character of nature that goes untouched. The lichen and moss freely growing up trees, the wildflowers growing to meet the weeds. My painted birds are greater than life and not true to size as I paint them as I see their big personalities show up in their little bodies. Also inspired by the medicine nature provides, being an herbalist, I will often paint apothecary-inspired art to pay homage to the full circle way in which nature holds me.