Artist Profile: Susan Brubaker Knapp

Susan Brubaker Knapp

Mooresville, NC

www.bluemoonriver.com

1. Did the change in dimensions present any specific challenges for you?  I liked the square format. I find being “forced” to adapt to different sizes and shapes encourages my creativity. 

2. Describe your design area, specifically your work table: what is the best thing about it? I work in a small (former) guest bedroom in my house. I got my work table at Pier One; it is a banquet-height scratch-and-dent-sale dining table, so it is the perfect height for painting, drawing, cutting and tracing. 

3. What set this quilt apart from other recent projects you have been working on? I’ve been doing a lot of flowers and botanical subjects, so focusing on old wood and paint and rust was a change. 

4. When you get “stuck” how do you deal with a “design block”?  How do you overcome it? I don’t get stuck very often or very long. Working on something different for a while can provide time for ideas to gestate or percolate and for solutions to emerge. 

5. Do you work on single or multiple projects at the same time? I often have 20 or more projects going simultaneously! Deadlines – for exhibitions, publications, etc., – often drive my schedule and determine what gets finished first.  

6. What do you hope people take away from your work? I focus on the really small details of things; there are so many miracles there. I hope to encourage people to look closer and appreciate those things, to look for the beauty around them.

7. What are the best parts of working on an art quilt? What are your least favorite parts? There’s really no part of it that I don’t like. It is a privilege to have the time and materials and ability to create art. 

8. What art/quilt-related organizations do you belong to? Studio Art Quilt Associates, International Quilt Association, American Quilter’s Society

9. Do you have a preferred color palette?  Why? I work mostly in clear, bright colors. I think it’s because I’m an optimist at heart!

10. What do you regard as your most interesting milestones along your art journey? The most recent milestone is having the opportunity to host “Quilting Arts TV.” The experience of being able to see the work of amazing fiber artists close up, and to talk to them about their work is definitely influencing my art.

Artist Profile: Frances Holliday Alford

Frances Holliday Alford

Grafton, Vermont 05146

FrancesHollidayAlford.com

1. Did the change in dimensions present any specific challenges for you?  The change in size was welcomed by me.  I found the larger square format easier to work to make a design.  I like the auspiciousness of the larger size and the applications for use after it is produced.  

2. Describe your design area, specifically your work table:  what is the best thing about it?  I have a new studio on the entire third floor of my house, which has been newly rebuilt.  There is ample space for storage and design.  When Kathy Metallica Cray left Grafton last fall, I bought her beautiful design table which had been designed and built here in Grafton by one of our local craftsmen.  It is a nice ample size, is on wheels and has a lower shelf for storage.  I used it to rotary cut the edges and also sat at the table for the detail work on the cat and for the beading.  The best thing about my table is that it is designed to be a perfect height for sitting or standing when I work.

3. What set this quilt apart from other recent projects you have been working on?  I felt a little more pressure in making this quilt.  I had waited too long, so the deadline was looming.  I had a hard time thinking of images that would fit the Affinity theme.  I wanted my front image, the cat, to be very graphic.  I had to think about the design issues and realize I had to keep moving.

4. When you get “stuck” how do you deal with a “design block”?  How do you overcome it?  It is easy to get "stuck" and I have a few ways to deal with it.  If there is no rush, I sometimes put things away for awhile to allow ideas to circulate in my mind.  I sometimes hang the piece upside down to see if there is something I am missing, or of course, stand far away and try to get a different view.  In this case, I was stuck on the position of the cat and I asked my sister, Lily Holliday, to take a look at it.  The next morning, she had a great insight.  I originally had the cat sitting on a mat and she suggested removing the mat and emphasize the idea that the cat was sitting right down in the flowers.

5. Do you work on single or multiple projects at the same time?  I do it both ways.  If I have a set deadline, I usually focus my entire energy on one project.  There are usually projects in the wings in differing states of completion.  I also have an ongoing habit of making small components downstairs when watching TV or at other times that I am sitting.  These components become quilts when enough parts are constructed.  Some projects need time to "marinate."

6. What do you hope people take away from your work?  My greatest hope is that people take joy or reflection from my work.  I like to use strong invigorating colors and images that have something to say.  

7. What are the best parts of working on an art quilt:  What are your least favorite parts?  The best part of working on an art quilt is the release of creativity and the unlimited options that are presented.  Because the materials, the subject, or the textures may be cumbersome, there are often construction issues that would not be present in other quilting genres.  

8. What art/quilt-related organizations do you belong to?  Quilt Alliance ( former Board Member), IQA, Austin Area Art Quilters, Dinner at Eight, Gomez Sisters

9. Do you have a preferred color palette?  Why?  I have an affinity for color and feel all colors have their purpose.  I prefer bright vibrant colors, especially in the red, magenta, blue ranges.  I like brighter colors for the same reason I tend to wear them.  I feel more vibrant using or wearing them.  In designing a quilt, I often rely on the complimentary colors as a solution for design issues.  ( Complimentary=Opposite colors on color wheel such as red+green, blue+orange or yellow+purple.)

 

10. What do you regard as your most interesting milestones along your art journey?  I am one of the tribe who liked to sew and also liked to make art but never realized this was a magic combination.  Once I had that understanding, the sky was the limit for me.  I have tried many other art forms but have found that fiber arts are very versatile and can even be portable.  Ceramics or Oil Painting are cumbersome for travel, but a small project with needle and thread can be done anywhere.  Understanding this was a great milestone for me. 

Artist Profile: Sue Bleiweiss

Sue Bleiweiss

Pepperell MA
www.suebleiweiss.com

1. Did the change in dimensions present any specific challenges for you?  I really liked working in this 40” x 40” format.  I usually work in the square or rectangle format so I was very comfortable working with these dimensions.

2. Describe your design area, specifically your work table:  what is the best thing about it? My cutting worktable is 40” x 72” so I have a lot of space to spread out and work and my 36” x 48” ironing station gives me plenty of room to create my large fused quilts.

3. What set this quilt apart from other recent projects you have been working on? Other than it was created with a specific theme I’m not sure there is anything.

4. When you get “stuck” how do you deal with a “design block”?  How do you overcome it?  I don’t get stuck very often but when I do I find that it usually helps to walk away and come back to it the next day.

5. Do you work on single or multiple projects at the same time? No I only work on one piece at a time.  I find it too stressful  and creatively distracting to have more than one quilt in process at a time.

6. What do you hope people take away from your work? A smile

7. What are the best parts of working on an art quilt:  What are your least favorite parts?  I love the entire process from the initial sketches,  dyeing the fabrics, the cutting/fusing and the quilting.  I can’t say that I like one part of the process more than the other because each one builds a foundation for the next step although I do find sewing the bindings a bit tedious.

8. What art/quilt-related organizations do you belong to? SAQA and IQA

9. Do you have a preferred color palette?  Why?  bright bold and saturated!  because that's the palette that makes me happy.

10. What do you regard as your most interesting milestones along your art journey?  It's hard to pick just one  but I'd have to say the first major one was appearing on Quilting Arts TV.

Artist Profile: Terri Stegmiller

Terri Stegmiller

Mandan, North Dakota

www.terristegmiller.com

1. Did the change in dimensions present any specific challenges for you?  Or if this is your first time with us, how did you like the size? This was my first opportunity to submit a quilt entry to Dinner @ Eight and the size was fine for me. I prefer this approximate size or smaller when creating art quilts. 

2. Describe your design area, specifically your work table:  what is the best thing about it? I have a wonderful cutting/work table that my husband and his brother made me. It holds a huge cutting mat and has plenty of storage space underneath. It is on wheels and I can move it easily when I need to. It serves many purposes. When I'm not cutting fabric for quilting, I spread out plastic sheets and paint fabric on it.

3. What set this quilt apart from other recent projects you have been working on? This quilt was different in that it was larger than my most recent work and I was working to a theme. Most of the time my quilt designs come from ideas in my sketchbooks, with no themes in mind.

4. When you get “stuck” how do you deal with a “design block”?  How do you overcome it? I have several ways I enjoy being creative, and if I'm in a creative block with quilting, I will pick up one of my other projects, such as weaving, fabric painting, or making handbags. If I'm in a total block, I will look for inspiration either on the Internet (Pinterest is a great tool for seeking inspiration) or I'll page through the books I have on my shelves.

5. Do you work on single or multiple projects at the same time? Multiple, as I stated previously, I have many interests and I find it hard to work on only one thing at a time. My brain is usually 10 to 15 projects ahead of what my hands can do.

6. What do you hope people take away from your work? When someone views my work, I hope that it intrigues them and gets them thinking about what story the quilt is conveying, whether they are conjuring up some sort of personal experience or a magical tale. My work tends to be colorful and whimsical, so putting a smile on someone's face is the best response I could hope for.

7. What are the best parts of working on an art quilt:  What are your least favorite parts? My favorite part is the design phase. My next favorite part is starting the project and getting the first layers of design and color on the fabric. My least favorite parts are the finishing steps...choosing a binding or edge finish and adding the hanging sleeve and label.

8. What art/quilt-related organizations do you belong to? I am a member of Studio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA), the Textile and Fiber Art List (TAFA), and International Quilt Association (IQA). In my hometown, I am a member of a local quilt guild.

9. Do you have a preferred color palette?  Why? When creating my quilts I don't think I have a preferred palette. I tend to like all colors and many color combinations, but there are times I seem to lean toward warm colors, especially oranges. But put some turquoises, teals, and lime greens in front of me and my eyes will be sending happy waves to my brain! 

10. What do you regard as your most interesting milestones along your art journey? One of the struggles I have is that there are not many people in my area that are interested in the type of quilting I do, and while I have some great quilting friends most have interests in more traditional types of quilting. A few years ago I started teaching locally and there didn't seem to be anyone interested in taking my classes. But slowly, over time, I am getting a lot more interest from quilters and they are starting to fill up my classes. I feel like I'm making headway in spreading my joy in art quilting and helping others think outside the traditional "box".

Artist Profile: Ann Turley

Ann Turley

Fallbrook,CA

www.annturley.info

1. Did the change in dimensions present any specific challenges for you?   It did bother me at first. I don't usually create pieces that are a perfect square but after getting into the creative groove, the size and shape no longer mattered.

2. Describe your design area, specifically your work table:  what is the best thing about it? Many years ago I purchased a cutting table when a fabric shop closed. It is the perfect height, width and length, and has a large storage shelf. There is a bank of fluorescent lights hung directly above it, along with a electrical outlet for my iron.  

 

3. What set this quilt apart from other recent projects you have been working on? The perspective of the dog and the heavier use of paint and pencil to achieve depth and detail. 

4. When you get “stuck” how do you deal with a “design block”?  How do you overcome it? I leave the quilt on the design wall so I can ruminate over it until a solution comes. In the meantime I work on other pieces, study the work of others, make smaller projects - anything to keep the creative flow going. Oftentimes a solution will come to me while I'm sleeping.

5. Do you work on single or multiple projects at the same time? Multiple, at least three. All will have wildly varying sizes, techniques and themes. 

6. What do you hope people take away from your work? I hope the viewer can feel the sense of joy I had when I was working on this quilt. The dog represents my favorite hound, one who made me laugh every day. His spirit shines through every fiber of this piece. 

7. What are the best parts of working on an art quilt:  What are your least favorite parts? The design process is the best part; I least enjoy binding or facing the edges. 

9. Do you have a preferred color palette?  Why? I love working with orange and green because it makes me happy.

10. What do you regard as your most interesting milestones along your art journey? A fairly recent move from Los Angeles to San Diego left me feeling apprehensive and unsure of where I was headed artistically. However, I have created my best work in these past four years. I've had several pieces accepted to galleries and SAQA exhibitions, and sold a quilt through a gallery. A change of scenery was a great milestone! 

Artist Profile: Suzan Cloud Engler

Suzan Cloud Engler
Panorama Village Texas
www.suzanengler.com

1. Did the change in dimensions present any specific challenges for you? Or if this is your first time with us, how did you like the size? The dimensions provided a new challenge for me.  Most of my work is designed on the computer and printed on cotton by a printing service.  The standard cotton that they use 42” wide; this is not be wide enough to allow for shrinkage from the quilting and finishing process and still end up with a 40” finished art quilt. Luckily, I found a new 54” wide fabric that worked great.

2. Describe your design area, specifically your work table:  what is the best thing about it? My work table is 36” high, on wheels, and has storage underneath.  But the best thing about my work table is the top work surface.  It is dual duty because I can iron and block projects as well as cut with a full size removable cutting mat.

3. What set this quilt apart from other recent projects you have been working on? The limited color palette is what sets this project apart from recent projects.  This is the first art quilt that I have done in a monochromatic color palette.

4. When you get “stuck” how do you deal with a “design block”? How do you overcome it?  When designing a new project, I revert to the design process used when I worked in architecture.  We always brainstormed three design solutions for a client.  If you present only one solution, they have nothing with which to compare.  By forcing myself to look at a design problem in three ways, I never seem to be stuck for long.

5. Do you work on single or multiple projects at the same time? I enjoy working on several projects at once.  I am designing one, while another is being printed, and am quilting on a third.

6. What do you hope people take away from your work? I hope that people find something that they can identify with in my work.  It is absolutely delightful when viewers come and share their stories with me.

7. What are the best parts of working on an art quilt:  What are your least favorite parts?  Design of an art quilt is exhilarating, quilting the project is like a meditation, and facings are just something I have to finish before I can start the next project.

8. What art/quilt-related organizations do you belong to? I belong to SAQA, IQA, AQS, SDA, and The Texas Quilt Museum.

9. Do you have a preferred color palette?  Why? The subject matter of the art quilt often dictates the color palette for me. No matter the palette, I always strive for high contrast.

10. What do you regard as your most interesting milestones along your art journey? I am always looking forward to new milestones, although being invited to Dinner@8 is definitely an important milestone for me.

Artist Profile: Yvonne Porcella

Yvonne Porcella 

Modesto, CA 

www.yvonneporcella.com

1. Did the change in dimensions present any specific challenges for you?   No problem, I have used this size in my work since 1993

2. Describe your design area, specifically your work table:  what is the best thing about it? Add on room, width of the house,

custom made table, 4" x 8" W 39"H cork surface. At one end a 22" x 42"W x 27" sewing machine table. Quiet view of the forest.

3. What set this quilt apart from other recent projects you have been working on? A portion of the design hung on my wall for 2 years, it would greet me when I entered the room. I was tempted to mount it and frame it without stitching. I do not have unfinished projects, Affinity was the perfect time to finish it. 

4. When you get “stuck” how do you deal with a “design block”?  How do you overcome it? I would not call it a block, just take a minute to rethink the project. If needed get out my favorite art books for inspiration. 

5. Do you work on single or multiple projects at the same time? Only one at a time, comes from my years of being an operating room nurse. We only worked on one patient at a time. 

6. What do you hope people take away from your work? Be inspired, want to own it, remember the artists name!

7. What are the best parts of working on an art quilt:  What are your least favorite parts? Just letting it flow intuitively. no rules, no pressure for perfection. Sewing the sleeve on, following IQA rules, clipping threads. 

8. What art/quilt-related organizations do you belong to? SAQA. Alliance for American Quilts, IQA, San Jose Museum Quilts & Textiles, National League of American Pen woman.

9. Do you have a preferred color palette?  Why? Bright with red and black and white somewhere. I have visited many museums, seen fabulous artworks, a bit of red in the paintings draws my attention. 

10. What do you regard as your most interesting milestones along your art journey? Founding SAQA, serving on many quilt related Board of Directors, sharing my institutional memory, Quilter's Hall of Fame Inductee, Honoree of IQA, traveling to teach, museums acquiring my work, having career retrospectives, seeing my name and art work on a large banner outside an art center, having a dealer who sold my work.