Rebecca Shelly

Rebecca Shelly got her Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree at the Maine College of Art and Design with a focus on Painting in 2004. Her paintings were shown in Portland, Maine and the surrounding area. In 2005 she moved to Portland, Oregon with some friends. There she continued to show her work. Selected galleries/spaces include New American Art Union, Falsefront Studio, Nisus Gallery, Launchpad, Wooley at the Wonder, Audio Cinema, Worksound Gallery and more. In 2009 she received her Master of Fine Arts Degree in Contemporary Arts Practices with a focus on Studio Arts from Portland State University.  

In 2014 she moved back to Maine and began teaching. She was also exploring the world of fiber through garment construction and quilting. She had also restored a Vintage Travel trailer to take across the country. This was featured in a six-page spread in Studios magazine. She was also featured in Germany’s Burdastyle and America’s GreenCraft magazines.  She then took a position as a Full time Art substitute in Maine at Sacopee Valley High School.  

In 2016 she moved to Chico, California. There she began teaching at California State University, Chico and Butte College. She taught: Basic Drawing, 2D Design, Life Drawing, Painting, Gallery Production, Art 1: Prehistoric Art to the Renaissance, Art Appreciation, Art Appreciation for transferring Japanese students and Fiber Arts.  In 2020 she received a Golden Art Teacher award because of her interactive online courses that she created at Butte College.  

Teaching Fiber Arts meant that she had to learn Weaving, Spinning, Natural Dye and Basketry. She did not realize that this would open a whole new world creatively for her. In 2022, She opened a Fiber Art Studio called Weft and Willow. Here she has 17 looms, six spinning wheels and sewing machines. In Fall, 2023, the Hand Weaver’s Guild of America asked her to be one of six studios to present on Zoom during Spinning and Weaving Week. Her Fiber work has been shown locally and in a Contemporary Fiber show in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Her Spinning will also be featured in an article with Fibershed this fall (23').