Artist Profile: Leslie Tucker Jenison

Leslie Tucker Jenison
co-curator
San Antonio, Texas
www.LeslieTuckerJenison.com/

1.  Describe your signature style in 5 words: Depth, Layered, Stitched, Narrative, Collaged

2.  Do you ever work in another medium and, if so, what is it and what appeals to you about it?  I work with paper, and love to combine it with cloth, paint, and stitch.  I am also a painter.  Having other artistic outlets is a lovely way to stay creative all the time.

3.  What's coming up for you in your artistic world?  I’m taping some episodes of QATV, traveling to Ohio to study with Nancy Crow, I’m dyeing fabric like crazy, working in my studio to finish several quilt and mixed media projects.

4.  Do you have any studio rituals?  Yes.  I always thank my mother when I walk down the hallway into my studio before I begin my work day.

5.  Who has inspired you on your artistic journey?  I have many people who have inspired me along the way at some critical junction.  My paternal grandmother inspired me to quilt, Virginia Robertson was my first quilt instructor, Jane Dunnewold & Hollis Chatelain have been wonderful mentors.  I am always inspired and entertained by my wonderful co-curator, Jamie Fingal.

6.  What are the 5 essential things in your studio that you cannot live without?  My wonderful BERNINA, my silkscreens, my paint and dye, my fabric & paper, and my “thinking couch”.

7.  What is on your design table right now?  A mess (LOL)!  I’ve been working with some small cloth & paper collages for a project called “Tea Flora-Tales” inspired by Cas Holmes of the UK.  I plan to take them along with me when I travel over for the Festival of Quilts in Birmingham in a few days.

8.  How do you juggle your artistic life, family, friends, etc?  It is less complicated now that we are empty nesters.  My husband is very supportive of my work and I have plenty of creative time to be in my studio.  We have been traveling a tremendous amount this year and that has presented a challenge to productive periods in the studio.

9.  Do you have any studio companions (human or otherwise)?  Oh yes.  My Miniature Schnauzer, Bizzi, is my constant companion.  She naps on the thinking couch!

10.  What was the biggest challenge in creating your piece for Reflections?  Figuring out how to create an obvious reflective surface that gave it the feeling of reflected light in an urban setting.