“America’s Doorstep” by Jenny Fielstra
Artist Statement: In America’s Doorstep, Jenny Fielstra repurposes the humble doormat, a threshold object both literal and symbolic, as a medium for social and political satire. Painted onto donated rug samples, each piece stages a miniature domestic drama at the very edge of the American home. Inspired by the irreverence of The Big Lebowski, Fielstra draws on themes of identity, absurdity, and surreal Americana to question the narratives we cling to in times of cultural upheaval. From distorted patriotism to performative inclusivity and late-capitalist privilege, these rugs are less about tying a room together and more about revealing what lies beneath it.
Don’t Tread on This House 2025
A twisted homage to the Gadsden flag, this piece reframes the coiled snake from symbol of resistance to emblem of reactionary insecurity. Rendered on a doormat, it evokes the absurd theatricality of warning signs and boundary anxieties in American domestic life. Like The Big Lebowski’s ever-elusive rug, this one asks what we’re really defending, and whether we even remember why.
All Are Welcome in This House 2025
Using a rainbow color scheme and whimsical lettering, this piece offers a disarming counterpoint to the culture of exclusion. With its upbeat tone and over-earnest message, it parodies “Live, Laugh, Love” aesthetics while challenging viewers to consider the difference between symbolic welcome and material support. It’s as sincere as it is absurd, a laid-back rebellion in rug form.
I Have Five Houses 2025
A gilded rug with a deadpan confession, “I Have Five Houses” pokes fun at performative minimalism, the housing crisis, and American excess at the heart of its division. Here, the absurdity isn’t just surreal, it’s real. The piece occupies a surrealist space where wealth is displayed ironically, but unapologetically, channeling the film’s energy of capitalist absurdity and the art of saying everything by saying very little.Art
Title: America’s Doorstep
Art Medium: Stencil and acrylic on jute rugs
Art Dimensions (h x w x d): 24x24
Art Price: 1,500.00
Artist Statement: In America’s Doorstep, Jenny Fielstra repurposes the humble doormat, a threshold object both literal and symbolic, as a medium for social and political satire. Painted onto donated rug samples, each piece stages a miniature domestic drama at the very edge of the American home. Inspired by the irreverence of The Big Lebowski, Fielstra draws on themes of identity, absurdity, and surreal Americana to question the narratives we cling to in times of cultural upheaval. From distorted patriotism to performative inclusivity and late-capitalist privilege, these rugs are less about tying a room together and more about revealing what lies beneath it.
Don’t Tread on This House 2025
A twisted homage to the Gadsden flag, this piece reframes the coiled snake from symbol of resistance to emblem of reactionary insecurity. Rendered on a doormat, it evokes the absurd theatricality of warning signs and boundary anxieties in American domestic life. Like The Big Lebowski’s ever-elusive rug, this one asks what we’re really defending, and whether we even remember why.
All Are Welcome in This House 2025
Using a rainbow color scheme and whimsical lettering, this piece offers a disarming counterpoint to the culture of exclusion. With its upbeat tone and over-earnest message, it parodies “Live, Laugh, Love” aesthetics while challenging viewers to consider the difference between symbolic welcome and material support. It’s as sincere as it is absurd, a laid-back rebellion in rug form.
I Have Five Houses 2025
A gilded rug with a deadpan confession, “I Have Five Houses” pokes fun at performative minimalism, the housing crisis, and American excess at the heart of its division. Here, the absurdity isn’t just surreal, it’s real. The piece occupies a surrealist space where wealth is displayed ironically, but unapologetically, channeling the film’s energy of capitalist absurdity and the art of saying everything by saying very little.Art
Title: America’s Doorstep
Art Medium: Stencil and acrylic on jute rugs
Art Dimensions (h x w x d): 24x24
Art Price: 1,500.00