Directory

Jeana Klein

Wey Hall 215F 828.262.2891
Professor Studio Art Fibers

Jeana Eve Klein is Professor of Fibers in the Studio Art program. Klein’s wide-ranging studio practice addresses recurring themes of labor and value, social media and other digital relationships, language and communication, the inherent meaning in materials, the fallibility and malleability of memory, and the limitations of documentation. As a textiles generalist and conceptual artist, the processes and materials she uses vary from project to project, including traditional textiles techniques such as weaving and knitting as well as digital media, installation, and social practice.

In her two current projects, Klein is comparing lived experience with its representation. Cruise Pix (Toss) reimagines the photographic documentation of her grandparents’ travels from the 1990s. The bead-woven recreations of these photographs become larger than life pixelized images for public display – essentially transforming them into a physical version of the typical social media sharing of today. In Imaginary Weaving, Klein is contrasting the slow labor and knowledge-building of weaving non-traditional materials with the artificial intelligence-generated version of the equivalent experience. With both of these projects, Klein is highlighting the disconnect between representation and reality, particularly when filtered through a digital lens.

Klein’s work has been exhibited widely, including solo exhibitions at OZ Arts (Nashville) and ArtSpace (Raleigh) and group exhibitions at the Untitled Space (NYC), the Museum of Design (Atlanta) and PULSE Contemporary Art Fair (Miami Beach). Klein earned her undergraduate degree from North Carolina State University and MFA from Arizona State University. She is a past recipient of the North Carolina Arts Council Individual Craft Artist Fellowship.

Klein has exactly one tattoo (a blue dot on her right foot based on a dye spill), is a passionate-yet-mediocre gardener, and challenges anyone to a game of Boggle. She shares her home with a husband, two kids, two guinea pigs, and a few house plants she’s trying to keep alive.

jeanaeveklein.com
Portrait of a person smiling in front of colorful woven textile art made from beads and yarn, wearing a light shirt and geometric necklace.

Cruise Pix (Toss)

This body of work began when Klein inherited the overlooked remnants of her grandparents’ lives—bins of worn clothing, broken costume jewelry, and three photo albums labeled “toss.” The snapshots inside, taken only a few decades ago, evoke an era when film was finite, albums were intimate, and an airplane mechanic and a secretary could retire into years of joyful routines and travel. By reimagining these images as large, beaded, pixelized works, Klein reflects on the shift from the preciousness of vernacular photography to today’s limitless, highly public digital documentation. The project transforms private family memories into physical forms that echo social-media aesthetics, while exploring the fragility of memory, the ephemerality of experience, and the near-disposability of personal archives once nearly thrown away.

See more in the gallery of faculty work

Beaded tapestry depicting an elderly woman in a pink jacket posing on a bridge overlooking a green river and rocky canyon. Hells Gate Jeana Klein
Beaded tapestry depicting a large ship passing through a canal, with a woman in sunglasses posing in the foreground. Automotive Carrier Passing in Canal Jeana Klein
Beaded tapestry showing colorful buses parked along a sunny street with foliage in the background. Cartagena – Feb 1993 Jeana Klein
Beaded tapestry showing an elderly woman in a pink outfit sitting on a white poolside chair among other vacationers. Outside Deck – Vollendam Jeana Klein
Beaded tapestry portraying an older woman reclining on a poolside lounge chair surrounded by vibrant blue and orange tones. Untitled (Grandma Sleeping – Vollendam Deck) Jeana Klein