Artist Profile: Kristin La Flamme

Kristin La Flamme

Portland, Oregon

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you? With room for such broad interpretation, I had to consider which direction would be most authentic for me -- did I want to focus on the graffiti aspect, or the personal aspect? I suppose setting myself the parameters of using only materials and themes I have used before could be considered a challenge, but to me it was the driving force of the piece. I enjoy the puzzle of making do with what I have at hand.

2. Describe your studio space? I work in what was intended as a "Family Room." It's large enough for me to have storage shelves, tables for both my sewing machine and my computer, plus a large cutting table/work area. The best part is that it's a dedicated studio space and I don't need to clear out when guests arrive or dinner is ready.

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months? My tessellated gun quilt, 'Murica, is on view with Quilt National '15 until October 10, 2017 at the Historical & Cultural Society of Clay County, Moorhead, MN; "Death Shroud for Democracy" is on tour with SAQA's Layered Voices exhibit and will next be at Oklahoma State University Museum of Art, Stillwater, OK, May 1- August 18, 2018. The Gallery tab on my website is always a good place to look for the widest range of my work: https://kristinlaflamme.com
 

4. Do you ever work in a series?  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist? Yes, I usually do work in a series, or at least a pretty straightforward trajectory. It's impossible to address all of one's desires in one piece, so a series allows the maker to try theme and variation. Some series are short lived, but I return to others in one way or another for years.

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy? I enjoy drawing, especially from a live model, but recently I bought a fixer-upper house and have been spending all my creative energies working on it. Of course, pretty and intriguing images on Pinterest and Instagram always feed me as well.

Artist Profile: Karol Kusmaul

Karol Kusmaul

Inverness, Florida

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you?  I enjoyed this theme, gathering and playing with personal symbols and items meaningful to me.  My piece was challenging because of the varied materials used, and the thickness of the layers I had to hand stitch through. Also challenging was the fact that I only gave myself a few days to get all the applique and hand quilting finished.  Even though I knew about the theme and deadline for a year.  Mea culpa.

2. Describe your studio space? I am so fortunate to have a separate building next to my home.  Skylights, kitchen, bathroom, office space, and a pool – it would make a super mother in law house.  I have room for my 12 foot APQS Millennium.  Hubby wants to downsize, but I’m digging in my heels.

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months? I’ve formed an online international fiber artist group at:  https://www.clothincommon.com   and my website: http://www.kquilt.com and blog:  http://kquilt.blogspot.com/

4. Do you ever work in a series?  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist?  I’ve done series of portraits, figures, still life and landscapes.  The benefits include having work to exhibit, having plenty of teaching samples, working to achieve variety, and having work that plays (or shows) well together.  I also did a series of Journal quilts, which was good, because I had committed to make one a month.  The challenges: getting too comfortable and not wanting to venture elsewhere, not getting stuck in a  rut where your work is predictable.

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy?  Anywhere I go, my creative energy is fed.  A ballgame, a visit to my dad’s assisted living facility, yoga class, vacation trips, church, a bike ride, even mowing the grass is good meditative time.  I so enjoy the visual treats that are everywhere.

Artist Profile: Lyric Montgomery Kinard

Lyric Montgomery Kinard
Cary, North Carolina

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you?  This was the easiest theme I’ve encountered so far and as soon as it was announced I had ideas in my head that quickly coalesced into a work. I’ve been working enough recently that I’ve settled into a current set of images and shapes and lines that speak to me as an artist. They are abstract to begin with and endlessly challenging. They have enough variety that I am still enthused and curious about where each new variation might take me.

2. Describe your studio space. Short story? Crowded. Long story? Right now it is more unmanageable than usual. I am in the process of moving from the small (about 16’ x 16’) ground floor room I’ve worked in for the past 16 years into the third floor walk-up attic. All of my inventory from up there is currently down here. So I’m dodging boxes and piles and sorting through bins of stuff to get rid of before I have to haul it all back up two flights of stairs.

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months. I am not going to be showing widely for most of 2018 as I concentrate on getting my new studio set up, get my current teenager graduated and out of the nest, and developing a new series of work. You can always follow my doings at www.LyricKinard.com to see if I get anything out there.

4. Do you ever work in a series? If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist? I absolutely love working in a series! My Personal Iconography piece is a continues exploration of circles and grids, sometimes broken, sometimes whole. Each finished piece leaves me with design questions to be answered in the next piece. It also leaves me with a pile of scraps and materials that often inspire just one more iteration of an idea. I do get bored easily - so my series are rarely created in a linear fashion. I’ll jump back and forth between a representational series and an abstract manner of working to keep myself engaged and interested. A series might run for years with a work added to it only once a year - but eventually it creates a body of cohesive work.

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy? I love watching science shows. I read fantasy and sci-fi literature for pure escapism. I garden now and then.  I especially love teaching and travel. The quilt world has allowed me to go new places, meet new people, and see new things while sharing what I love! I am as energized by helping a student to find their creative spark as I am by being in the studio.

Artist Profile: Susie Monday

Susie Monday
Pipe Creek, Texas

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you?  For a change, this theme presented little challenge as an idea but technical challenges to my hand.  Because I immediately saw how I could cut up an earlier piece that appeared in a Dinner @ Eight exhibit I had to figure out the best way to reassemble it. I ended up using my own version of a Boro running stitch to both re-quilt the piece by hand and to reassemble the different elements including new patches.

2. Describe your studio space?  I work in the studio of my dreams: a converted two car garage with a giant design table in the middle. I walk to work across the driveway and look out at the beautiful Texas Hill Country through the windows in the front. My wife retired this spring, so we have a lot of travel on the  calendar this year. Some of my studio time is spent with traveling art, small sections of hand stitch.

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months?  I hope to have a piece in the local Fiber Artists of San Antonio exhibit, I currently have a piece in Form, not Function and, of course, with all of you at the international festival! This is been a half year of experimentation and exploration, working more abstractly than I have in the past, so I'm just now getting some pieces finished to submit to exhibits.

4. Do you ever work in a series?  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist? I tend to work in a number of series all at once. Go figure. Some of the work I do refers back to series of work that I completed three or four or even five years ago. 

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy? We just added a little river cabin to our (small) collection of Airbnb properties, so it seems I'm spending a lot of time, creatively, with chopping Prickly Pear cactus, stalking the thrift stores for furnishings, and a paint roller in the hand. but the kayak early in the morning makes it all worthwhile.

Artist Profile: Sue Bleiweiss

Sue Bleiweiss
Pepperell, Massachusetts

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you?  I struggled with the theme at first and spent many hours working through different ways to approach it in my sketchbook.  My original thought was to create a piece that played on the word graffiti but I just couldn’t get anything to come together.  Once I stopped focussing on the word graffiti to drive the content of the quilt the idea for Work In Progress came together quite quickly. I started with a few small rough sketches and then once I had a good vision for what I wanted it to look like, I drew it full scale. 

2. Describe your studio space?  My studio is on the third floor of my home.  It's about 500 square feet - one side is my office and the other has my sewing machine, workstation, ironing station and all my supplies.  It’s a well lit space with a window at each end and two skylights so I get a good amount of natural light.  I have a separate wet studio in the basement where I do all my fabric dyeing.

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months? I have several pieces on display at the Brigham City Museum in Brigham City UT.  You can also see my Inside Out quilt on display at the Houston International Quilt Festival in the Modern Quilt Showcase and in the traveling exhibit 'Threads of Resistance.'

4. Do you ever work in a series?  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist? A good portion of my body of work is part of a series.  Working in a series helps you avoid those painful “what do I do next” slumps that we all fall into at some point.  It helps you circumvent those moments because it gives you the answer to the what’s next question.  I have a sketchbook filled with pages of ideas for quilts in my tutti frutti series so if I’m not sure what to do next I review my notes, an idea is sparked and I’m off and creating again.

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy?  I live on the East Coast so I spend a lot of time outdoors in the warmer months enjoying the break from the colder winter months when there is snow and ice on the ground.  My husband and I spend a lot of time canoeing and hiking and I always have my camera with me.  Birds are one of my favorite subjects to photograph and the river that we live along provides me with lots of subject matter. 

Artist Profile: Terry Grant

Terry Grant
Portland, Oregon

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you? To choose a beautiful, appealing subject that I could render using all my favorite, personal marks, symbols, and techniques on. I wanted something that is recognizable and would demonstrate that even a common, universal image becomes personal when it takes on an artist's personal visual language.

2. Describe your studio space? I am fortunate to have a small studio, built just for me, in a wooded area just steps from my house. It is filled with light and I am surrounded by my fabrics and tools. There is a small loft upstairs, with storage and guest space.

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months? I am very excited that one of my pieces is part of the SAQA Concrete and Grasslands exhibit that will be at the 9th Asia Quilt Festival, Shanghai, China: September 22 - 24, 2017. I also hope to have work in the local Beaverton Arts Mix in September and will have my studio open for the Washington County Open Studio tour, October 14-15. 

4. Do you ever work in a series?  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist? I have several series that are ongoing. Each gives me an opportunity to explore a theme or concept in depth and pushes me to continue to see things in new ways. I love it when my "series" suddenly overlap or intersect—always an exciting surprise and evidence that our brains are constantly working behind the scenes, making connections that we aren't even aware of!

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy? I started knitting a couple years ago, and am learning bookbinding techniques, but I find that travel is the thing that most feeds that creative urge. Creativity is part of every culture and seeing that universal love of color and design is so inspiring. We are currently planning a trip to Morocco and even just looking at photos and reading about it is giving me new ideas!

Artist Profile: Frances Holliday Alford

Frances Holliday Alford
Grafton, Vermont

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you?  I had to think about this theme for a long time.  I had been developing a class with a similar subject, personal symbols.  The addition of graffiti made the whole theme so much more interesting...but it also required a deeper excavation into myself.

2. Describe your studio space?  I have the whole third floor of my house and an elevator to get there.  There is running water in a deep sink and a Kurig Coffee Maker and a small refrigerator.  I have covered insulation board on several walls for designing. The floor is 12 inch black and white checkered tiles which are great for measuring.   Because it is an attic, I regret that there are not more full sized walls.  I also use my basement for wet work.  There is a big double sink, several long tables, a washer and dryer for dying cloth and a cement floor.

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months?  You can always come by my house.  Drop by any time and I will be happy to show you.  I do not expect to have anything on display before the Quilt Festival in Houston.

4. Do you ever work in a series?  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist?  I love working in series.  If it is something that I feel is successful, I will return to it again even after a series feels complete.  Currently, I am most excited about the texture that happens from washing and drying quilted fabrics along the way.

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy?  Travel seems to be the most fertile way to feed my creativity.  I like to take a lot of photos, to write and also to work along the way.  I also find that working with other artists in regularly scheduled activities is very important.

Artist Profile: Susan Fletcher King

Susan Fletcher King
Houston, Texas

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you?  For once, I had too many ideas!  It took me far too long to settle on just one idea and even then, I couldn’t resist and changed and changed again!

2. Describe your studio space?  My studio is very small.  I have compared it to being inside a space capsule.  I tend to work on multiple projects at one time so this small studio space gets very cluttered.  From time to time I have to shovel things out and start fresh.

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months?  My work will be shown at Quilt Festival this year.

4. Do you ever work in a series?  Funny you should ask!  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist?  I realized that my current D@8 piece is my subconscious telling me to work with particular imagery and explore those images.  I am now consciously exploring series work in a few different ways.  This is a very rewarding process since it pushes me past the obvious solutions and into uncharted waters.  This can be a painful process but growth is never without some discomfort.

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy?  There are many things that feed me, not all of which seem creative on the surface.  Many times, mundane or repetitive tasks (like folding laundry) allow me to become meditative and my creative mind steps in and the design ideas start flowing.

Artist Profile: Martha Wolfe

Martha Wolfe
Davis, California

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you? This was a pretty accessible theme for me as I focussed on "artistic expression based on personal style". I have several recurring images in my work, and seabirds are probably the most common. From a distance, the flock appears to be a lot of the same bird - but as you look closer, personalities emerge, individuals. No two are the same. Each has a story.

2. Describe your studio space? Currently, cluttered….but in general, it’s a bright space, with a shelf unit along one wall, filled with my favorite things - fabric, books, pictures and memorabilia. Another wall is a design wall. My cutting table and computer desk are on cinderblocks so I can do most activities standing (which is great), with the exception of actually machine sewing. There's music and podcasts and friendly cats. It is my portal to peace these days.

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months? My work can be seen in the NorCA/NV SAQA “Strata” exhibit at the Pence Gallery in Davis, CA; NorCA/NV and CT SAQA “Local Color” exhibit at the Slater Memorial Museum in Norwich, CT; NM SAQA “Natural Healing” exhibit at various locations - currently at the Inova Cancer Center in Fairfax, VA; Global SAQA exhibit “H2Oh” at various locations - currently at the National Quilt Museum in Paducah, KY; Artist Circle Alliance’s “Threads of Resistance” exhibit at various locations - currently New England Quilt Museum in Lowell, MA; Viewpoints 9: Word exhibit at IQM/IQF in Houston, TX; and, of course, Dinner @ 8. 

4. Do you ever work in a series?  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist? While I don’t feel I work in a series, I do have certain imagery with personal significance that frequently inspires my work - birds, fish, bicycles, to name a few. Consequently, people associate them with my work, which can be both positive and negative - I never want to be limited to these subjects.

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy? Photography feeds my creative energy, capturing new things when I travel, or using a macro in my back yard. Beyond that, printmaking, visiting museums and exhibitions, and talking with friends that share my passions, all feed my creative spirit and keep me imagining what is next. Confession: I deliberately shy away from new endeavors, like knitting and painting and glass-blowing and all those other things that beckon…...I haven’t enough time as it is.

Artist Profile: Sherri Lipman McCauley

Sherri Lipman McCauley
Lakeway, TX

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you? Quilting to a specific size is always a challenge. Coming up with a cohesive idea was daunting at first, but once I selected the fabrics, the design easily came together.

2. Describe your studio space? My studio is a large room off my kitchen, with a glorious door that can be closed to hold in the creative chaos. Sewing tables, a cutting table, ironing board, and design wall take up the floor space. Way too many yards of fabric, spools of thread and sewing tools cover most of the surfaces. I try to keep my paints and dyes corralled on shelves and in drawers. My view out the window is of Lake Travis, and it is just glorious!

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months? My first solo show, Painted Threads, will be coming down at my local library, Lake Travis Community Library in Lakeway, Texas at the end of July. Early in August, I will be hanging a solo show, Threaded Journeys, at the Austin International Bergstrom Airport in Austin, Texas. I will have a piece hanging at the Whistler House Museum of Art in Lowell, Contemporary Art Quilts 2017, Massachusetts August 5-September 1, 2017 and Visions Art Museum, Interpretations: Conversations, October 21, 2017 - January 7, 2018 in San Diego, California.

4. Do you ever work in a series?  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist? Yes. Locating the same materials to use in the series is sometimes a challenge. I have been working intermittingly on painted cloth with gentle lines of stitching, adding a touch of color. This has given me an opportunity to explore different types of paint and methods of application. The testing of new techniques is an exciting aspect of working in a series. Just by changing one element, the entire focus can be shifted, yet all pieces are related.

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy? I like to enter local shows and take photographs of interesting trees and plants. I like to think that these photos will become a part of an upcoming series. Getting together with like-minded art friends also feeds my soul.

Artist Profile: Judy Coates Perez

Judy Coates Perez
Sacramento, California

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you? None, I just thought about the types of imagery that inspire me and pulled out a photo from my iPhone that I loved.

2. Describe your studio space? Chaos? Its a large room off the back of my house with a 4’ x 8’ work table in the center and shelves around the sides that never have enough room given how many different types of supplies I keep on hand for teaching.

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months? I have a quilt traveling with the Threads of Resistance exhibit, other than that online on my website or my Facebook page or Instagram.

4. Do you ever work in a series?  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist? Not intentionally, but I suppose it happens at times.

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy? I go to galleries and museums and see other types of art, I love spending times in nature or all kinds and am never with out my iPhone ready to photograph things that I see. My archive of photos are a great source of visual imagery for me to work from.

Artist Profile: Linda Anderson

Linda Anderson
La Mesa, California

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you?  I looked at my personal artistic history and what elements consistently showed up in my work as iconic concept images.  When I came up with those elements, which I could condense to 4 (people, places, perspective, photography),  then it was fun to think of an image that would independently represent each element for me and my work.  Surprisingly those visual symbols came easily.  I usually tell stories of other peoples and cultures.  I loved being able to tell something about my story this time around.

2. Describe your studio space?  I have a 4 1/2 foot by 6-foot table working space with a set in mid arm sewing machine in one corner of the table.  Everything gets done on this table space…. painting, cutting, drawing, all the myriad steps.  On the wall next to me are all my threads.  There is a cubby behind me with fabrics and next to it a small table with my computer.  And of course, an ironing board nearby.  This is a spare bedroom that also is my husband’s office.  I like being able to spend time together in the same room.

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months?  I have a piece at Southern Utah Museum of Art in Cedar City, Utah, till August 26 where I just won Best in Show.  I have a piece at Sacred Threads in Herndon, Virginia, until July 23. I will have a piece in the Houston Quilt Festival in Quilts: World of Beauty in November.   I have a piece touring with SAQA in Australia through November and another piece touring with SAQA in Birmingham, England, on August 10-13.  And I hope to have 1-2 pieces in Road to California next January.

4. Do you ever work in a series?  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist?  It seems all my work is consistent in representing stories of peoples and cultures, so that in essence is a ‘series in theme’ that always grabs me.  I am also working on a ‘China series’, based on photos I took on a trip there.  I intersperse working on that theme with creating other pieces that have stories I feel compelled to tell, such as an Oaxaca piece I’m working on now.  We have a trip next year to India, so I know I will be gathering more photos for an India series.

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy?  I spend an hour each morning exercising.  After that, I’m pretty narrowly focused.  Working 6 days a week on my art feeds my creative energy.  Doing the daily work with all the myriad steps involved in how I create continually feeds me to do the next step.  I know what the end piece will look like, since I create a finished drawing at the front end of how I want it to be.  The reverse engineering needed to get to that end image is a daily challenge I love to solve.  My mind is always active.  I love waking up to do what I do. 

Artist Profile: Gerrie Congdon

Gerrie Congdon
Portland, Oregon

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you? It took me a bit of thinking. I decided that my line dancing series embodies the work that I most love to do: creating small motifs that are then fused together to create an art quilt.
2. Describe your studio space? I share a lovely space with my daughter, Lisa Congdon. She does fine art painting there twice a week. It is a large room with high ceilings, a wall of windows and a cool concrete floor. It was once a dairy building and this is the original floor. I have a print table and cutting table and storage units for my fabric and supplies.  I do my sewing and finishing at home in what I call the multi-purpose room. I have my sewing table, storage of some supplies, printers, computer and thermofax.
3. Where can people see your work in the next six months? I don’t currently have work that will be exhibited except for this piece.
4. Do you ever work in a series?  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist? I never thought that I worked in a series. At least I was not consciously working in a series. I took a class on Working in a Series with Kathleen Probst where I analyzed my work and was able to see that I actually have 3 - 4 series. The benefit of that was realizing that one of the series was more successful and made me happier. I think it helps to focus on what you do well.
5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy?  I love to go to art museums and galleries. Taking walks and photographing the world around me. Taking workshops. Just hanging out with other creative friends.

Artist Profile: Heather Pregger

Heather Pregger
Houston, Texas

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you?  As an abstract quilt artist, I don't always work with a concrete theme in mind.  And, honestly, if I AM trying to convey a message it is often discernible only to me.  But I do have a symbol, or icon, that I return to again and again in my work, the tuning fork.  It has great meaning to me.  It has changed recently into something more primitive and graffiti-esque, which I felt made it a good fit for the exhibit.  It was a very interesting challenge.
2. Describe your studio space?  I work in a large, airy L-shaped room with lots of south and west facing windows.  It contains my sewing table, an ironing surface, my cutting table, my design wall and my ancient Gammill longarm machine.  And a loveseat by the west windows, where you can almost always find my cat, Boomer.  He does let me join him for naps there occaisionally.

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months?  I have a quilt in Textile Posters, a SAQA show debuting at International Quilt Festival in Houston.  I have a quilt in the IQF "World of Beauty" show.  One of my pieces is in "Live your Brightest Life", a show honoring the memory of Yvonne Porcella.  It can be seen currently at Sacred Threads.  I am in a group show with Sue Benner, Barbara Oliver Hartman and Carole Trice October 14 through November 9 at North Lake College in Irving, Texas.  


4. Do you ever work in a series?  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist?  I am working on two series right now.  One is the tuning fork series, the other is the geological series, based on sketches of microscopic mineral thin sections I drew in college.  When working on a piece, I almost always have a "what if" moment.  What if I changed this or added that -- my mind moves on to the next quilt while I'm working on it's predecessor.  I find that working this way allows me to expand and refine the series and allows me to grow as an artist.  When I run out of "what ifs", the series is finished.

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy?  I love to work in the garden.  I love to walk, mostly around my neighborhood or in the Fort Worth Botanical Garden.  I love to travel.  I love to read.  I love to paint in watercolor.  I'm not very good at it, but I love it!
 

Artist Profile: Jeannie P. Moore

Jeannie P. Moore
Escondido, California

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you? This theme gave me a multitude of ideas and it was hard for me to focus and choose just one design. I started designing and working on one concept and put that aside. I then began another quilt which is this one but didn’t finish it before I almost went back with my first design!

2. Describe your studio space? I work in 2 rooms in my home in San Diego. My sewing room consists of my Bernina longarm and my Bernina Quilters Edition. My workroom has 2 large tables for cutting and ironing and a design wall. I have a small courtyard off my studio room for dyeing fabric. Hopefully the future will bring me a larger studio space!?

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months? I have a quilt in Textile Architecture at IQF Houston, 3 quilts are traveling with SAQA’s Concrete & Grasslands, Radical Elements and Food for Thought.

4. Do you ever work in a series?  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist? I have a Roundabout Series which I enjoyed and would like to do another similar one. Once your design/concept is established I think the series comes quickly. Thanks for the idea!

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy? I love to cook and don’t necessarily like following recipes. I like creating a meal with what I have on hand and especially with seasonal vegetables and fruits. I’ve recently taken up knitting and love all of the dyed yarns!

Artist Profile: Rachel King Parris

Rachel King Parris
Birmingham, Alabama

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you? Choosing an icon, design, finding the perfect fabric

2. Describe your studio space?  Large enclosed area in the back of the garage about 400 square feet. tile floor, huge design wall, large cutting/pressing table, sewing table, utility sink, small sitting area. Gift from my man.

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months?  Dinner@8 exhibit at the International Quilt Festival in Houston

4. Do you ever work in a series? I never have, but intend to try.

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy?  I write, read voraciously, visit museums, enjoy digital photography, get outdoors, read friends’ blogs, visit beautiful places.

Artist Profile: Virginia Spiegel

Virginia Spiegel
Elgin, Illinois

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you? I had an artwork ready to be submitted for jurying WAY in advance, but then it was chosen as a cover for a magazine. I was working on several other artworks using the canoe motif and extensive surface design so I didn’t need to agonize (again) on how I wanted to create “Boundary Waters 88.” It WAS difficult to be mindful of the 40x40 inch size after creating several very large artworks.

2. Describe your studio space? It’s a happy place filled with inspiring photos, artworks, and a lot of fabric created by me.

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months? Now – September 19, “H2OH!,” National Quilt Museum, Paducah, KY;  Aug. 10 through 2018, “My Corner of the World,” Various locations in Australia;  Aug. 11 – Oct. 22, “EDGE: On the Verge”, Alice C. Sabatini Gallery, Topeka, KS;  Now throughout 2017, “2x20”, Original Sewing & Quilt Expos; Sept. 22 – 24, “Concrete and Grasslands,” 9th Asia Quilt Festival, Shanghai, China.

4. Do you ever work in a series?  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist?I love working in series.  I never grow bored of creating new ways to share with others the beauty of the natural world. I’m ever hopeful that we will come to treasure our precious natural environment, rather than mindlessly exploit it for profit.

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy? Painting, gardening (both veg and landscape), walking, traveling. 

Artist Profile: Susan Brubaker Knapp

Susan Brubaker Knapp
Mooresville, North Carolina

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you? This theme was more difficult for me than usual. I think it was because it took my brain in so many different directions at once… There was the “personal iconography” component and the “graffiti” component. How to marry them together in a unified piece? What WAS my personal iconography, anyway? I considered making it look like those Russian religious icon paintings, framed in gold, and rich in symbolism. Did the word “graffiti” mean that it needed to have a graffiti look to it? I researched graffiti and found a wide range of styles. I chewed over the theme for a very long time before deciding to work on a portrait of my daughter. I don’t usually do faces, so I sweated a great deal about executing the face and stitching it. 

2. Describe your studio space? My studio is in a former guest room in our home, and it’s about 14’ x 14’. I have a two large windows, a raised work table for cutting and painting, a sewing cabinet with my Bernina machine, a large design wall, and way too much stuff. I yearn for a bigger, more organized space, and especially one where I can get really messy.

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months? I'll have pieces in the “World of Beauty” exhibition and the Dinner @ Eight Artists exhibition at International Quilt Festival in Houston this fall, and a piece in the “Threads of Resistance” exhibition that will be traveling the country through 2018.

4. Do you ever work in a series?  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist? I love working in series (I was on a butterfly kick a while back, and now I’m obsessed with fish!), but I also find it to be constraining. My biggest problem is that I have so many ideas that I will never have time to work on them all unless I become a vampire and can live eternally. 

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy? Pretty much everything I do feeds my creativity. (Today I went to a medical appointment and came up with 10 new ideas for art quilts.) My favorite hobbies – geneaology, drawing, photography, cooking – all play a big role. My morning walks are a major source of material. 

Artist Profile: Jane Dunnewold

Jane Dunnewold
San Antonio, Texas

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you? It’s always a challenge to think about how work I’m already doing fits a theme proposed by someone else. I learned a long time ago that my work couldn’t possibly rise to meet every theme exhibits feature, without my feeling sort of schizophrenic in the process. So what I love about this theme is that it can be so broadly interpreted. Any artist who is working true to her authentic self does work that can fit the theme. That’s beautiful because of the opportunities for inclusion and also for a variety of interesting pieces that vary greatly from one to the other. I also loved it because I could keep on track with what I am exploring personally, and also try a few new ideas I’d had in mind.

2. Describe your studio space? I have a thousand square foot studio which is a major blessing. Since surface design is at the heart of what I create, I have great sinks and a 16 foot printing table. Although I don’t do a huge amount of quilting or sewing on my pieces, I have a great, sunny room where the mid-arm and other machines are set up. I think how fortunate I am every time I walk into my spaces. And I’ve got Alexa, to keep the music and podcasts coming!

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months? On my website. I’m fortunate to have a one person show slated for Tulsa at the Hardesty Art Center in September. I have work in Denver in the show “75” in honor of Judith Trager. Also in the Oregon SAQA show in the fall, as I was their juror. And I’ll have a one person show in January at the Texas Quilt Museum, and also work at the Armory Art Center, in West Palm Beach, Fl.

4. Do you ever work in a series?  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist? I always work in a series. My work is driven by ideas and there are too many ideas to resent them all in one piece and then feel done with it. Each piece leads to other ideas, which are conceptual, but also ideas about other colors or other additional processes that might enhance or further the work. I did a series two years ago that had fourteen pieces in it and when it was done, it was done. i Loved working on each piece and each gave me huge joy. But the end was obvious and I haven’t had any impulse to return to that sort of work. It’s interesting that a series can have a start and a finish, or it can be a way of working that evolves over several years before it really gets traction. I’ve done 15 pieces in the style of my Personal Iconography piece and I’m nowhere near finished with the ideas!

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy? 

I cook and I write. I bike, and play ball with Pema (my blue eyed Pit Bull-Great Dane mix) My creative energy never turns off, and for that I am quite grateful!

Artist Profile: Cindy Cooksey

Cindy Cooksey
Irvine, California

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you? The theme seemed more complex than previous challenges, and I wasn't certain that I was on the right track. Also, it was a challenge to have confidence in my inner vision of what the finished piece would look like, which I could see but others could not.

2. Describe your studio space? I've had a dedicated art studio ever since we moved into this house in the mid-eighties. It is a light, airy room in the center of the house, and I am grateful to have it. It's where I store supplies, plan, cut fabric, and sew on my machine. All my handwork such as embroidery and embellishment is done downstairs in the family room.

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months? Currently at the Sacred Threads exhibition, in the "Your Brightest Life" tribute to Yvonne Porcella. A couple of other appearances in exhibits are pending but are not firm enough to mention at this time.

4. Do you ever work in a series?  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist? I have worked in after-the-fact series: with tortoise, hexagons, people, quirky landscapes, etc.  But I haven't really planned ahead to work in a series. Still, it is interesting to compare the quilts and think about whether I should do more of them. 

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy? This year I have been volunteering at a local senior center, leading a craft group. People bring their own projects - anything from sewing clothing to knitting, crochet, quilting, needlepoint, etc. I have brought most of these activities myself to the group. People are there because they all love to make things with fiber. Another activity that energizes me creatively is daily walking. I often ponder creative questions as I walk, and often come up with answers.

Artist Profile: Kathy York

Kathy York
Austin, TX

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you? I did not know how to interpret the theme. Also, my artistic voice is in the midst of a growth spurt which has left me a little flummoxed in general about what to do next. 

2. Describe your studio space? I have a dedicated extra bedroom as my sewing studio.  It has hardwood floors, an 8' x 8' design wall, and furniture that is easily reconfigured as needed.  I also have great shelves for storage and good lighting. I added a small sink to my studio this last year as there was existing plumbing in the closet.  It has been a wonderful addition!

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months? Live Your Brightest Life - Sacred Threads, Herndon, VA, Jul 7 - 23Threads of Resistance, New England Quilt Museum, Lowell, MA, Jul 11- Sep 9Tranquility, SAQA, Festival of Quilts, Birmingham, UK – Aug 10 - 13Concrete & Grasslands, SAQA, Festival of Quilts, Birmingham, UK – Aug 10 - 13Concrete & Grasslands, SAQA, Asia Quilt Festival in Shanghai, China,  Sep 22 - 24Concrete & Grasslands, SAQA, The Knitting and Stitching Show, London, UK, Oct 11 - 15Threads of Resistance, Pacific International Quilt Festival, Santa Clara, CA, Oct 12 - 15A Celebration of Color, International Quilt Market/Festival, Houston, TX, Oct 27 - Nov 5Personal Iconography: Graffiti on Cloth, Dinner@Eight, International Quilt Market/Festival, Houston, TX, Oct 27 - Nov 5
Threads of Resistance, Original Sewing & Quilt Expo, Minneapolis, MN, Nov 9 - 11Concrete & Grasslands, SAQA, The Knitting and Stitching Show, Dublin, Ireland, Nov 9 - 12Concrete & Grasslands, SAQA, The Knitting and Stitching Show, Harrogate, UK, Nov 23 - 26Threads of Resistance, Fuller Craft Museum, Brockton, MA, Dec 9, 2017 - Feb 18, 2018
Wild Fabrications, SAQA, Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum, Wausau, WI, Dec 17, 2017 - Feb 25, 2018

4. Do you ever work in a series?  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist? I have worked in a series before.  I love exploring different choices by working in a series because it often leads me to new revelations. It is engaging and satisfying in a way that is very different from working on individual pieces.

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy? I love to garden.  The heavy work helps me feel good and sleep well.  It is rewarding to feel at peace in the garden and see things in nature that I miss while working in my studio.

Artist Profile: Annie Smith

Annie Smith

The Woodlands, Texas

1. What kind of challenges did this theme present to you?  The biggest challenge was the size.  The largest square piece I've created was 30" x 30".  Those extra inches made a big difference.  Being a first time Dinner at Eight Artist did add to the challenge because it's something I've dreamed of for several years.

2. Describe your studio space?  My studio is 11" x 13" and packed!  A large sewing/cutting table with an electric lift and a big board take up most of the room.  Lots of fabric and supplies have their homes in various containers.  The most treasured piece in the studio is my grandmother's rocking chair by the window.  This is where Mom sat and embroidered while I quilted.  What you will not find in my studio are things hanging on the wall.  I'm a random thinker, and those things become opportunities for my mind to wander down bunny trails.  While a larger space would be nice, my studio is my cozy, happy place. 

3. Where can people see your work in the next six months?  In addition to the Dinner at Eight exhibition at the International Quilt Festival in Houston and Chicago, I will be one of two solo shows at Copper Shade Tree Gallery in Round Top, Texas.  Suzan Engler and I will have our art displayed there for the month of February, 2018.

4. Do you ever work in a series?  If so, what benefits or challenges does this present to you as an artist?  I do work in a series, in fact two.  I tend to alternate between them along with exploring newer ideas.  While the series work provides comfort, it can become limiting.  I definitely have lots of new things I want to explore.  Again, that random thinking kicks in, and I have to go with it.  It's all about growth, whether extending existing techniques or developing new ones. 

5. What other activities do you engage in that “feed” your creative energy?  I love painting fabrics.  After several years away from this, I will have time to fling paint again.  I also love to spin art yarn.  While I no longer dye my own yarn, I do card my own batts.  I spin with a drop spindle and a spinning wheel.  I have found spinning is a wonderfully calming activity for me.