Richela Fabian Morgan

Artist Statement

I started my creative life as a crafter who specialized in duct tape and up-cycled materials. For a decade, I successfully wrote craft books and taught craft workshops.Then I started to believe that what I made didn’t necessarily need a set number of steps or have a functional use. Without an agenda, I began to make “stuff”, things that were wholly impractical, not necessarily decorative, and deeply personal. I knew that I had crossed over into the land of making art.

For me, finding color and texture in the world is like hunting for treasure. I delight in discovering items that others have taken the time to design or produce, and then I use it to express my own art. It feels like a collaboration with people whom I may or may not have anything in common. In this way, mixed media art appeals best to me.

I am particularly drawn to book sculptures. I love making art out of old books because I feel like I am using the energy of the book to tell another story. The old books inspire me to express my own fear, anxiety, anger, sadness, obsession. My most often used tools are a pair of detail scissors and a black micron pen. I find these two things symbolic of my creative mantra: feel your feelings and keep moving forward. Scissors are used to edit or alter the nature of paper. A pen is used to scribble or doodle free thoughts and feelings. And when using both tools, there is no going back; I can’t fix mistakes. I can only keep moving forward.

Richela Fabian Morgan is a NYC-based Filipina-American mixed media artist and fine crafter. She mainly creates with scissors but loves the smell of markers and paint. Richela works as a teaching artist with many non-profit arts education organizations such as Ballet Tech Foundation, Sing For Hope, Project Art USA, ArtsWestchester, and the Rye Arts Center. As much as she loves creating art, she is equally passionate about inspiring others to make art.

Richela has also written several craft books, including TAPE IT AND MAKE IT (Barron’s Educational), DUCT TAPE BAGS (Clarkson Potter), and THE GREEN CRAFTER (Citadel).