Artist Profile: Susan Brubaker Knapp

Susan Brubaker Knapp

Mooresville, North Carolina

http://www.bluemoonriver.com

http://wwwbluemoonriver.blogspot.com

1.  Describe your signature style in 5 words: Photographic. Fused or Painted. Threadsketched. Free-motion quilted. 

2.  Do you ever work in another medium and, if so, what is it and what appeals to you about it? I do, but it is all just different kinds of fiber! I knit, embroider, needlepoint, do needleturn appliqué, and recently took up cross stitch. I think I enjoy these things because of all the hand work involved, since I do so much machine work in my art quilts. They are also all very portable, and I travel a lot. Even when I’m home, I need projects I can take to my two daughters’ soccer practices, piano lessons, appointments and such. My hands are almost never not busy! 

3.  What's coming up for you in your artistic world? I’m very excited to be hosting Quilting Arts TV; I took over this year with Series 1400 (which will air in July). It gives me a front-row seat to learn from some of the best art quilters and surface designers in the world! I’m also excited to be teaching in some exciting venues in 2015: Empty Spools Seminar at Asilomar, North Carolina Quilt Symposium, Maine Quilts, and PRO Chemical & Dye. 

4.  Do you have any studio rituals? I nearly always clean (either in a major or minor way) before I start a new project. With too much clutter, I feel incapable of starting, and perhaps guilty that things are such a mess. 

5.  Who has inspired you on your artistic journey? There are too many artists to mention. But one has been a real mentor to me: Nancy G. Cook of Charlotte, NC. She is a fellow fiber artist, and has encouraged me and helped me every step of the way. 

6.  What are the 5 essential things in your studio that you cannot live without? My Bernina sewing machines, Aurifil 50-weight Cotton Mako thread, PRO Chemical & Dye textile paints, a large cutting/design table, and good lighting (I recently installed a very bright LED overhead light that I love).

 

7.  What is on your design table right now? A fusible appliqué piece based on a photo of orange dogwood leaves. It’s for an article for Quilting Arts. I also have about 10 art quilts in progress (and this does not include my huge number of UFOs). 

 

8.  How do you juggle your artistic life, family, friends, etc? You know the phrase that Dory (in the movie “Finding Nemo”) kept repeating? “Just keep swimming, just keep swimming…” That is one of my mantras. Some days it is swimming, and some days it is more like treading water. As long as my head is above water at bedtime, I count the day a success. I also believe in the occasional therapeutic mini nervous breakdown. 

 

9.  Do you have any studio companions (human or otherwise)? My cats Wicked and Trouble, and my dog, Sophie. 

10.  What was the biggest challenge in creating your piece for Reflections? I had too many ideas! I had to abandon one because it would have taken a long time to paint, and my time was limited. The strong vertical format was also a challenge.

Artist Profile: Hollis Chatelain

Hollis Chatelain

Hillsborough, NC

 www.hollisart.com

1.  Describe your signature style in 5 words: original, realistic, monochromatic, painted & stitched

2.  Do you ever work in another medium and, if so, what is it and what appeals to you about it? Creating gardens & creating food, I love the textures, colors, and 3-dimensionality (not to mention spending time in the garden and eating the food).

3.  What's coming up for you in your artistic world? I will be making DVD's of my techniques. I will be teaching at AQS-Charlotte 

July 30-Aug.2, IQF-Houston, and at numerous other venues. My work has been accepted into the Visions show in San Diego.  I will be leading a group of people on a tour of Kenya in 2015.

4.  Do you have any studio rituals? listening to music & NPR

5.  Who has inspired you on your artistic journey? Mia Bosna whom I have known since the age of 14, www.miabosna.com/

6.  What are the 5 essential things in your studio that you cannot live without? sewing machine, dyes, threads, fabric, music

7.  What is on your design table right now? Materials to prepare for making the DVD's.

8.  How do you juggle your artistic life, family, friends, etc? I cloned myself (but my husband doesn't know so please don't tell him!) 

9.  Do you have any studio companions (human or otherwise)? Occasional mice that run across the room.

10.  What was the biggest challenge in creating your piece for Reflections? The deadline.

Artist Profile: Kathy York

Kathy York

Austin, TX
www.aquamoonartquilts.blogspot.com

1.  Describe your signature style in 5 words:  fun, colorful, flat, graphic, story telling,

2.  Do you ever work in another medium and, if so, what is it and what appeals to you about it? 

No, unless you count cooking and gardening.  :)

3.  What's coming up for you in your artistic world?

I am looking forward to spending the summer making some new work to submit to Quilt National.

4.  Do you have any studio rituals?

I always start with coffee and facebook.  Then I get to work.

5.  Who has inspired you on your artistic journey? I lean heavily on the QuiltArt listserv and the SAQA listserv for inspiration and support.  So many wonderful artists to follow!

6.  What are the 5 essential things in your studio that you cannot live without?

My Juki sewing machine, my iron, a tephlon sheet, design wall, and my Ott floor light.

7.  What is on your design table right now?

I have the layout of a new modern quilt for the Michael Miller fabric challenge.

 

8.  How do you juggle your artistic life, family, friends, etc?

Family and friends come first.  I like getting my work done early so that deadlines don't sneak up on me.   

 

9.  Do you have any studio companions (human or otherwise)?

I have three cats and a kitten.  The kitten does not always get free access....depending on his behaviors.

10.  What was the biggest challenge in creating your piece for Reflections?

I tried some new techniques, including shaving foam and monoprinting, and they all gave me headaches.  I am used to having more success in my intentions and experiments, such was not the case with this one! 

Reflections 2014 - Accepted Works

"Reflections."  

A mirror image. A response to a thought or word. A memory. What glints back at us as we gaze upon the water. The throwing back by a body or surface of light, heat, or sound without absorbing it.  What will your reflection reveal about you?

Venue
International Quilt Market - October 25-27
International Quilt Festival - October 30-Nov 2
Houston, Texas

Sponsored by Havel's Scissors

Artists
Natalya Aikens - Specular Reflection
Sue Bleiweiss - Reflections
Deborah Boschert - Waning Crescent Mediation
Hollis Chatelain - Golden Girl
Cindy Cooksey - Saffron in the Park
Jane Davila - Willow Meditation
Diane Doran - Intertwined
Barb Forrister - Groovin' on a Sunder Afternoon
Linda Frost - Tumbled Stones 
Terry Grant - The Moon is a Mirror
Desiree Habicht - Reflections of our Fathers
Cathie Hoover - Quelle Vie! (What a Life!)
Stacy Hurt - Let it Go
Lyric Kinard - Haiku *above
Susan F. King - The parable of the Dragon & the Sheep
Sherry Kleinman - In Still Water
Susan Brubaker Knapp - Gazing Globe
Kristin LaFlamme - Selfie
Sherri McCauley - Aging On
Jeannie P. Moore - Marilyn
Yvonne Porcella - Primarily Water 
Wen Redmond - Amazements of Tender Reflections
Lesley Riley - Read & Reflect
Carolyn Ryan - There and Back
Julie Schlueter - Facets of Life
Sarah Ann Smith - Eli, Cross Country 2013
Cynthia St. Charles - Cotonwood Reflection
Larkin Van Horn - Troubled Water
Terry Waldron - Medieval Reflections
Victoria Findlay Wolfe - Reflect Upon Your Blessings
Kathy York - The Deep End

Jamie Fingal
Leslie Tucker Jenison
co-curators 

A 33 piece collection of art quilts, made specifically for this exhibit.  24" wide by 60" high


 

Call for Entry - What's for Dinner?

We are happy to tell you that the What's for Dinner? exhibit will continue into 2014. The entire scoop is here

All quilts must be uniform in size, horizontal format, with nothing hanging off the sides, top, or bottom. The finished quilt size, or “place setting,” must be 24” x 15” (width x height) and cannot exceed 2" in depth. Please, no metal silverware attached. Artist Statements should explain your piece, the meal, and the meaning behind it. Artist Statements may be edited for clarity and length. Be sure to select “quilt” when asked for the category.

We’re also adding a new category this year: 3-D fabric table decorations! Make display items for the table - think bottles of wine, pitchers of “water,” vases with flowers, serving bowls with ladles, cream and sugar bowls, or salt and pepper shakers. Items should be true to life-size so that everything is approximately the same scale, i.e., nothing smaller than 4” and nothing taller than 24”. Artist Statements should explain your piece and the meaning behind it. Artist Statements may be edited for clarity and length. Be sure to select “décor” when asked for the category.

Completed submissions with visuals must be received online by Friday, July 11, 2014. You will be notified no later than Friday, August 1, 2014, regarding the piece(s) to be included in this exhibit along with shipping instructions. If selected, the quilts will need to arrive in Houston no later than Friday, September 5, 2014. Quilts will be returned by the end of December 2014 if quilt does not travel, or arrangements may be made to have your piece(s) picked up at the conclusion of the show. If you agree to allow your piece(s) to travel, your quilt will be returned by the end of August 2015.

 Jurors: Jamie Fingal and Leslie Tucker Jenison

What's for Dinner? article

Article written by Sherida Warner, The Daily Sentinel in Colorado.  If you go to their website, you can only read one sentence, before they ask you to join to read it.  Sherida posted this on Facebook, so that we could see it.

Painting With A Twist & Shout

Jamie and I always have a blast when we co-facilitate workshops.  And nothing makes us happier than teaching together in Houston, especially this workshop!  It is a day filled with absolute joy and fun.

The students work on the same length of canvas, frequently changing positions (and canvases:  we generally have several going).  We paint all morning and, in the afternoon, we work with the painted canvas which has been cut apart and shared between the students.  Here are some photos of the day-long workshop.

The beginning stage of each painting.

Many hands make beautiful work!

A detail…

The group poses with each canvas.

Afternoon:  Each artist creates a variety of things using the painted canvas portions:

a sketchbook cover, art cards, postcards, ATCs.

Cara Gulati shows one of her gorgeous pieces.

A wonderful day of creative work!

We hope to see you in a future workshop!