Hi, I’m Becka.

I am a full-time teaching artist who works in a micro-studio in Minneapolis. I work primarily in fabric and paper, specializing in textured designs from cut paper illustrations using recycled papers and embroidered surface designs. One of the traditions of fiber art that inspires me is the idea of making practical and every day things be beautiful as well as functional. Why else do you make a lace edge on a handkerchief or hand weave a kitchen towel when a scrap of old fabric would do the job?  Because that’s a tiny bit of art that makes you feel good. You can read more of my artist’s statement here. I have won several awards for my work, including an Honorable Mention at the MN State Fair Fine Arts competition.

As a teacher, rather than being a specialist in one area, my specialty is being able to teach a beginning class in just about anything related to fabric or paper. I love watching the light bulb come on for someone as they have that “ah-ha!” moment or the gasp of excitement as they unfold their first dye project.  I love to teach and you can find out all about my upcoming classes here as well as online classes I host and my new Skillshare classes (launching in August 2023).

I spent 11 years as the director of education, working as an arts administrator at Textile Center, a center for fiber arts in Minneapolis.  In 2014, I decided to retire from that arts admin life in order to spend more time making art, teaching, and working as an advocate for fiber art and artists.

In 2015, my first book, The Spoonflower Handbook, was published. I worked with co-authors Stephen Fraser and Judi Ketteler to create the ultimate handbook to all things fabric design, Spoonflower-style.  I was the tech expert for the book, putting together all of the step-by-step instructions. In 2015, I also received a Jerome Foundation grant for emerging fiber artists and participated in the American Craft Council’s Hip Pop emerging artists program. Since then, I have been an exhibiting artist at the American Craft Council shows and a member of the ACC Artist Directory.

In 2016, I was appointed to be on the international Etsy Sellers Advisory Board for 2016. In my interview with Etsy, I talked a lot about how I consider my Etsy shop to be one important facet of my artistic business.  I don’t want to be a full-time “manufacturer” of goods, but rather to run a small niche shop that helps to support my other art making and teaching projects. In 2016, I also received a MN State Arts Board Artist Initiative Grant to do an “unexpected art” collaboration with local museums and a neighborhood partnership grant to create public art utility box wraps in a local neighborhood.

In 2019/2020, I was thrilled to be a member of the Bell Museum’s Resident Artist Research Project. In 2022, I received a MN State Arts Board Creative Support Grant and I spent a good part of that year illustrating a book about music and musicians in Minnesota. In 2023, I completed my Book Arts Certificate from the MN Center for Book Arts. To view my formal teaching and exhibitions resume, you can click here: BeckaRahnResume.

I served on the board of directors of the Hennepin History Museum in Minneapolis and the Weavers Guild of MN and as the MN State Rep to the Surface Design Association. I am really committed to making art in my community whenever I have the opportunity. I have worked with The Museum of Russian Art, Bakken Museum, Bell Museum, Dakota County Libraries, Prospect Park Association, Weavers Guild of MN, North Suburban Center for the Arts and many other local organizations to make art together.

I have a creative computer geeky husband and a large yellow lab named Stanley. We like to go on long rambling photo walks in search of lattes, squirrels and milkbones. My favorite colors are turquoise, green and orange.  I am an avid reader, especially of sci-fi, space opera, and historical fiction.  I love jazz standards, live theater, and Japanese food. I am a big geek for board games and played my first D&D campaign in 2020.