Cal Navin is a Detroit-based mixed media, 3D, and fiber artist whose practice explores serious themes and social dilemmas through a lens of curiosity, imagination, and unexpected play. A native of metropolitan Detroit, she earned her BFA from the College for Creative Studies in 2007.
Before pursuing formal art education, Navin was a self-taught sculptor and maker. She spent 42 years at General Motors, retiring as a Sculpting Model Manager after working extensively with both design and engineering. That experience continues to inform her approach to form, scale, materials, and three-dimensional thinking.
Navin’s work has evolved from sculpture and painting into fiber, mixed media, and 3D modeling. Her current practice includes large-scale tapestries and three-dimensional works featuring monkeys and chimpanzees as recurring subjects, while she now begins a series of intricate beaded works. Her work has been exhibited throughout the United States.
PRESENTATION DETAILS
From Pixels to Velvet: Translating the Digital Image into Fiber
Friday 04/30/27: 3pm (Zoo Auditorium)
Detroit-based mixed media and fiber artist Cal Navin shares how she transforms digital images into richly textured velvet and brocade tapestries. Following her process from image simplification and full-scale patterns to fabric selection and appliqué, she explores how light, texture, and intuition shape the finished work and the power of partnership between digital technology and traditional textile techniques.
