Chiaki O’Brien is a SAORI Leader Committee Certificate recipient. She finished a one year-course of SAORI Weaving at the head school, Osaka, Japan, in 2001. She worked as an instructor for the SAORI head school before moving to Minnesota in 2004. She’s an artist-in-residence at schools, as well as teaching at various locations such as at the Weavers Guild, assisted living places, MN Landscape Arboretum, sheep and wool festivals around Midwest as well as other fiber related festivals/conferences in and outside of Midwest (Kansas, California). She was awarded a Jerome Fiber Artist Project Grant, allowing her to study “Bengala Dyeing” in Japan, and she now teaches this natural soil dye process as well.
SAORI weaving taught her the way to create by following her heart. Her teaching goal: to convey the “Joy of Exploration” to students in her classes. She teaches all ages and all abilities. Chiaki operates Studio FUN from her home in Bloomington, MN. Her website is: saoristudiofun.com.
