Working from her Atlanta studio, Ms. Braun is recognized for her innovative, self-directed explorations of thoughtfully selected materials—porcelain, reed, rubber, encaustic wax, aluminum screen, fiber, reclaimed post-consumer discard, and foil gilding—used in unconventional applications. She challenges the boundaries of what should be included in an artist’s toolkit, reimagining materials for her new purposes.

Her latest work involves knitting dressmaker’s pattern tissue accented with gilding foil, which she transforms into large tapestries and vessels with undulating, intricate surfaces. Recently, Ms. Braun gained international recognition for combining the contrasting materials of rattan reed—a traditional basket-making material—and rubber, commonly found in construction. The unexpected fusion of these elements results in sculptures that exude personality and movement.

Since 2019, Ms. Braun has been exploring the potential of the pattern tissue, initially using it to texture surfaces and encase her reed forms. By 2023, she embraced the material as her primary medium, knitting fragile 4-inch-wide strips with no tool other than her fingers, that in close inspection reveal the tissue’s inked patterns and instructions.

By juxtaposing the undervalued mundane factory waste tissue with precious gold gilding foil, Braun challenges social norms, traditional notions of value and materiality, undervalued labor in the sewing industry, and the preciousness of gold. In these works, the tissue gains new life and value. The large scale of these knitted constructs twists its use from unseen to the forefront. Ms. Braun sees in the finished draped gullies and peaks a reference to natural landscapes.

Ms. Braun was born in Boston, Massachusetts. She reminisces that as a child she had few store-bought playthings—she was encouraged to use her imagination to create toys from scrap paper—bits and bobs. Braun continues to refer to her studio as a “happy, discovery, play” environment. Ms. Braun earned a BA in Sculpture and Art Education from Indiana University. Before establishing her studio in Atlanta, she served as Executive Director of a New York Art Center, as well as an Art Educator and Museum Retail Manager.