Artist Profile: Wen Redmond

Wen Redmond

Strafford, NH

1, What year did you make your first quilt?  Traditional or art?  I made my first quilt, self-taught & experimental with found scraps, in 1974.

2.  What is the first show, and year, that you ever entered your art quilts?  Venue?  Quilt National has always been at the top of my list, Art Quilt 21, that is now Art Quilt Lowell, MA, Quilters Gathering, MA and my local guild. In 1986, one of my pieces was requested for the museum that became the National Quilt Museum in Paducah, KY.

3.  What is your artistic style?  I love to experiment. My work has grown though many stages. Presently, I work with digital fiber processes.

4.  Have you ever changed your style from when you started making quilts?  Yes, I have a lecture, Journey with a Fiber Artist, which shows my work as it changed and grew. Transformation is the lifeblood of my work.

5.  What other style in quilt making piques your interest?  I’m really into digital works. I enjoy how other artists use the process to present images differently or use a consistent subject matter. Digital Collage is fast becoming my new focus.

6.  What other medium in art influences your work as a fiber artist?  Media Mix is my term for a workshop I offer using fibers, papers and a host of acrylic mediums. The spontaneity and serendipity feed the process of experimentation. 

7.  What do you have coming up?  Shows, Articles in magazines, Books, etc.

I’m proud to have been included in Brainstorms at Visions Art Museum, CA, recently, at Interplay: Digital Mixed Media at Cotuit Center, and upcoming, Sacred Threads, Pushing the Surface, Johnson-Humrickhouse Museum OH, Niche Award finalist and interview Lesley Riley’s radio www.blogtalkradio.com.  Published Articles in SAQA Winter Journal, Quilting Arts Magazine, Textured Fiber Photographs, Interweave DVD Workshop, Textured Fiber Photographs.  Books - Cutting Edge Art Quilts, Mary Kerr; Fabric Surface Design, Cheryl Rezendes; Bound, a WCA NYC exhibit, Studio Quilt, Sandra Sider.  Teaching at Peters Valley Crafts Center , NJ on August 23-27

8.  Where will your art take you from here?   Hopefully, into the flow, imagination and continued growth. One of my key phrases I use about my art is- ‘Making the Imagination Real’.

One of the joys of teaching is seeing workshop participants reveal themselves, get into the flow and make art.

9.  Describe your studio space:  Recently, I have moved out of a delightful studio space in an art community and also, out of a large studio in my home into a smaller but very efficient studio in a new home. There is lots of natural light. There is the simple joy of retraction, with the expectation of how this new environment will influence my work.

10. What was the biggest challenge you have encountered in the making of your art quilt for "An Exquisite Moment?"  I wanted to use lots of color for this piece. Normally, my work is muted in tone.  I worked with a number of images, which are collaged digitally.

The colors in the piece are created by the addition of images of my painted fabrics. These layer over the complete collage, influencing or changing the final color.

http://wenredmond.weebly.com/