Tiffany Ownbey's unique collage and papier-mâché exhibition will be on display at Kentuck's Museum Gallery until November 27, 2023. Tiffany Ownbey is a papier-mâché artist living in the woods of North Carolina.

Tiffany's exhibition is a beautiful walk through misshapen memories. Each piece contains many types of old paper, from yellowed pages from a well-loved book to stamps and antique sewing patterns. She adds drawings in ink or paint and a variety of other found papers with historic symbolism. The antique sewing paper, which is a common thread between all the two dimensional pieces, ties the exhibition together by providing interesting lines and an antique color to the overall look of the artwork.
"My papier-mâché sculptures and collages are a combination of the past and the present, nature and consumerism, reuse and beauty."
Tiffany is a genuine, playful personality with a deep appreciation for the history of each piece of paper she utilizes. She combines the histories of her found object papers into brand new stories. Her well-titled show, "Old Made New" consists of two-dimensional as well as three-dimensional works. Her papier-mâché sculptures came first in her career. She began as a child making papier-mâché piggy banks and Christmas ornaments.

Ownbey studied ceramics and printmaking at both the Savannah College of Art and Design and the Penland Schools of crafts. However, her formal training did not deter her love of papier-mâché.
"I discovered that papier-mâché was still my first love and it quickly became my medium of choice."
Each piece is truly unique and comes to life in its own way. Some pieces come to life through her process; sometimes, they are inspired by the materials themselves. Tiffany says, "Sometimes I find something and think, this needs to be made into that."
Her work is an homage to her childhood. She lives in her grandmother's home in the woods in North Carolina. Her grandmother was a seamstress, which lends itself perfectly to the heart behind Tiffany's work. Regarding the use of sewing patterns she says, "The paper is just really lovely. It has such a nice patina when finished. It becomes translucent"
Ownbey sources her material from variety of sources including donations and a devotion to thrift store hunts. The efforts of her tedious, many layered works are well rewarded in the resulting depth and beauty of each piece.
Come experience this one-of-a-kind show at Kentuck's Museum Gallery, open Monday - Friday 9:30 am to 5:30 pm and Saturday - Sunday 12:oo pm to 4:00 pm. Please call Kentuck at 205-758-1257 or email mbell@kentuck.org to inquire about purchasing any of Tiffany's available works.