Artist Profile: Suzan Engler

Suzan Engler

Panorama Village, Texas

www.suzanengler.com

1. How do you describe yourself?  I am a digital and fiber artist, nurturer of plants and people, lover of chocolate.
 

2. What is your creative process? I often start with a photo or an idea and challenge myself to discover the various ways that I could portray the subject matter in the photo. I prototype on the computer because it gives a fast way to generate and explore variations. For my Dinner@8 Patterns entry, once I settled on using a fractal as the basis of a pattern, I generated at least 40 different fractals in a variety of fractal types, styles, colors, and textures.  This lead to settling on one for Dinner@8, but the exploration has lead to several other projects as well.

3. Describe your studio space.  First, let me say I love my label maker.  My studio is small but highly organized into well-labeled boxes and drawers.  I hate wasting time looking for things. 

4. What's your signature style? How long did it take you to find your style when you first started making art quilts?  I first started making art quilts in 2010 after seeing an exhibit at IQF Houston.  I have a background as a computer analyst and an architectural designer so designing on the computer seemed only natural for me. I continue to investigate ways to digitally create artwork.

5. Are there artistic endeavors you are yet to do?  I want to explore 3D and encaustic as it relates to fiber art. 

6. Do you keep a sketchbook and/or journal?  I take photos and notes on my phone since it is always with me.  In turn, those go into a folder on my computer for inspiration.  My computer background is a slideshow of those images.

7. Being published is important to artists, so do you have any instructional dvd's, author of books, YouTube channel, have a website with other artists for collaborative projects?  While I have done collaborative work with other artists, there is no website to document this work. 

8. Do you teach?  I do not have a regular teaching schedule but I occasionally lecture on principles of design and using the computer as a design tool.

9. Having your work in juried, invitationals, and solo shows is a great way to get your name out there. Where can people see your work? In addition to the Dinner@8 exhibit in Houston, my work is on display at IQF Houston World of Beauty, Houston Texas, SAQA Tranquility debuting at IQF Houston, and Quilts=Art=Quilts at Schweinfurt Art Center, Albany, New York.  

10. How many years have you had your work in d@8 exhibits, or is this your first time?  This is my second year to have work in Dinner@8, I am so thrilled be included!

Do you have a special memory about Yvonne Porcella that you would like to share with us?  I never met Yvonne in person but felt that I knew her warm and creative essence through her many interviews.  Her book, Six Color World, was one of the first art quilting books that I purchased.