If Meghan Shimek were a singer, you’d recognize her voice after just a couple of notes.

Translation: Peek one of the artist's large-scale, woven wall hangings or sculptures and you’ll instantly know it's hers. Ethereal, whimsical, colorful, and fuzzy with a capital F—no other fiber artist out there weaves the spectrum like Shimek does.

Another dead giveaway you’re staring at a Shimek original?

“It makes you feel like you’re in the clouds, or reminds you of a Muppet,” she smiles. And in truth, her Oakland studio, stuffed with rainbow yarns, would have certainly given kid-at-heart Jim Henson a kick. Her playful work has been inspired by her young son: "When he was little, he was holding a leaf and examining it for a long time. I started looking at it and saw all the colors and veins and details. That interaction made me realize he was really experiencing everything for the first time. It made me stop more often and take in my surroundings."

People are drawn to the fluffy texture, hues, and giant scale of Shimek’s textile art, and keeping your hands to yourself is no easy feat when in touching distance of her woolly mammoths. A feeling of comfort seems to emanate from them, which is poetic given that she developed her signature weaving technique as a way to cope during a difficult period in her life.

Shimek had first learned how to crochet ("badly") as a teenager, then began weaving scarves on a small loom in bed in her 20s. And though she would later take Navajo weaving and floor-loom weaving classes, and learned tapestry from Tricia Goldberg, Shimek's own technique, as well as her full-time dedication to her craft, didn't come until 2015.

“Ten years ago, my father died after a brief fight with pancreatic cancer. It broke my heart and changed my life. Two months later, my marriage ended,” she recalls. "I decided to give myself one year to see if I could make it as an artist."

It was during this time that the Michigan-born, Oakland-based fiber artist created her signature weaving technique with the use of wool roving (with processed wool fiber not yet spun into yarn) to create a random pattern that reveals both the beauty and vulnerability of the material. "Working with the wool, allowing it to speak, helped to move the grief through my body."

A decade on, Shimek’s art is still fueled by emotion. A tight or loose weave is a likely indicator of her stress level or joy factor at the time of creation. As a person who bottles up feelings, weaving continues to be a welcome therapeutic release. “While I still struggle sometimes, making really big art helps me to let things out and make myself be seen in the world.”

Though some of her sculptures are made entirely by hand, most of Shimek's work is created on a frame loom—she has at least 14 looms in her Jingletown studio. (Called The Loom, she moved there in 2022 after several years of working from home.) She was excited to tell us about her latest acquisition: a custom piece from Lost Pond Looms that's adjustable so she can make pieces as small as nine inches or as large as 16 feet. "The loom takes up an entire wall in my studio!"

If you’ve worked at or visited the Bay Area offices of Google, Allbirds, ThredUp or Etsy, you’ve probably seen one of her stunning pieces—in fact, Shimek’s art lives in businesses on every continent except Antarctica. Her work can also be found in galleries and museums: See it currently at Oakland's Uptown Fine Art alongside Ben Trautman ("who makes incredible sculptures") through November 16th; in the exhibition A Beautiful Mess: Weavers and Knotters of the Vanguard at Dennos Museum in Traverse City, Michigan; and opening December 5th at Joanne Artman Gallery in Los Angeles.

The artist loves a good collaboration, having teamed up with ceramicists, photographers, dyers, woodworkers, body workers, interior designers, stylists, and many others over the years. She also does a lot of commissioned work (in other words, yes, you can order up your own).

"I absolutely love working with individuals to create something for their space because I get to know the people and what they like, and try to make something that feels like them. I especially love working with businesses because they usually want something really big. I love making really big things! It feels good to be able to move my whole body and be really physical with it. I love the challenge."

Another way to get to know Shimek while simultaneously tapping to into your own creativity? Take one of her workshops, which she conducts a few times a year. As someone who mostly works alone, the workshops are a fun opportunity for her to connect with community and meet new people.

“I really love sharing my craft with others. My favorite part is seeing what people make. I teach everyone the same four techniques, yet everyone’s piece is so different.”

On December 4th, Shimek will be leading a wall hanging workshop at the 7x7 Social Club pop-up. We'll break out the bubbly and have some pre-holiday fun. Each guest will leave with a one-of-a-kind, large-scale woven piece. Beginners are welcome and shouldn't be intimidated: "The majority of people I teach are not artists," she says. "It’s not hard at all!"

// Reserve your spot at 7x7's Wild Wall Hangings workshop with Meghan Shimek at tickettailor.com. Learn more about the artist at meghanshimek.com.