Artist Jenny Rideout is surrounded by several of her textile creations.

Although Jenny Rideout’s textile-based body of work, “Sails, Freq Flags, and Bonnets for Space Exploration,” is a fitting motif for an exhibition located in a coastal town, her foray into fiber arts and pursuit of this particular theme was more of a coincidence with her move to Astoria.

Rideout, who is one of nine artists featured in Imogen Gallery’s annual “Hook, Pulp and Weave” exhibition this month, moved from the Portland area with her husband in 2022.

The choice of Astoria as the destination “kind of hit like a bolt of lightning,” Rideout said. Although they both liked the city, they weren’t set on it until she was out with a friend one day, and it felt like “everyone we ran into that day was from Astoria or had moved to Astoria.”

Rideout’s friend suggested the couple move as well. The decision seemed further validated a few weeks later, when Rideout’s husband was walking along Alberta Street in Portland wearing a pirate hat, and a passerby mentioned, “You look like you’re heading to Astoria.”

About the same as the move — which Rideout described as “a reset” — she embarked on another journey, which was delving back into the art world, only this time with a focus on textiles. “I think I got here and it just kind of cleared the ducts,” Rideout said.

Sewing is something she’s been around frequently in her life, from growing up in Ohio near Lake Erie to moving to Oregon in 1990. Her father was a sailor, and she still has the sailmaker’s palm he used for sail repairs. Her other treasures include her great-great grandmother’s treadle sewing machine and quilts made by her great-grandmother and mother.

These were all items that made the cut as she downsized for the move, and she was intrigued by their commonalities. “I noted the comfort, utility, protection, and beauty passed down for generations through the humble use of needle and thread,” she said.

She couldn’t help thinking, “I want to do more of that.”

Finding inspiration

Rideout’s latest body of work came to her during a period of feeling stuck and trying to figure out what she wanted to create. She turned to meditation, and it was then she conjured the vision of a giant, majestic sailing ship.

She described the intricate patchwork sails of the ship as covered “in colorful mends, mysterious symbols, sigils and patterns.”

“The resulting sails are meditations on power, creativity and the culmination of experiences alchemized for maximum propulsion,” she said. It captures the idea that a person’s past experiences — both good and bad — combine and connect.

As she continued to ruminate on this idea, she had the image of the crew — “a group of gals in funky bonnets.” Finally, she wanted to include frequency flags, or “freq flags,” which are flown on seafaring vessels to indicate homeport.

The project is inspired by ancient abstract tantric art and is meant to be both grounding and expressive.

‘A rich vein of gold’

With textile art, Rideout enjoys pairing different colors and textures for her fabric creations, describing that process as “really evocative.” She also feels incorporating textiles from different eras “brings in an element of timelessness, pulling together a variety of influences.”

For Rideout, another fun part of the process is foraging for interesting, eclectic and diverse fabric to recycle and include in her artwork. That takes her frequently to the bins at Goodwill. Her friends also will keep an eye out for pieces to give her.

Additionally, she uses Indian ink and acrylic paint to embellish her constructions with paintings, which is closer to what she was creating as a professional artist before taking a step back from the industry.

The show at Imogen, which opened during December’s Astoria Art Walk and runs through Jan. 8, is her first gallery show since venturing back to the art world.

“It was really nice to get them out of (the studio) and out into the world and see how people reacted,” she said.

She believes she’ll always be a creator, as art serves as a significant outlet in her life.

“It just keeps becoming more and more important as time goes on and more fun,” she says.

Right now, Rideout is solely focused on this project and not looking to move on anytime soon. “I’m loving this trajectory,” she said. “It’s a rich vein of gold for me right now … all of this has a lot of depth and width to explore for a long time.”

See more of Rideout’s art

See more of Rideout’s art

“Hook, Pulp and Weave” is at Imogen Gallery, 240 11th St., Astoria, through Jan. 8.

Also showing in the fiber arts exhibit are Pamela Chipman, Susan Circone, Kim Lakin, Celeste Olivares, Helen Repp, Amelia Santiago, Julie Kern Smith and Karen Thurman

www.imogengallery.com