Q & A with Kathleen
Q: “What aspect or characteristic of your artwork do you feel is most important for the viewer to recognize or appreciate?”
KK: For my quilts picturing people, I hope the viewer will connect in some way with what is pictured. Many of these quilts tell a story, and can also evoke an emotional connection. The initial reaction can lead to closer examination of the painting and stitching, on which I spend a great deal of time.
Q: “How and why have you chosen to express your creative energies in the medium of layered fabric?”
KK: From early childhood I have loved drawing and painting. I also sewed and played with fabrics most of my life. In the past several years I have explored how to effectively combine the two mediums, and continue to experiment with ways that both paint and stitch contribute to the texture and meaning in a quilt.
Q: “What do you consider your greatest challenge when working with this medium?”
KK: Making sure that both paint and stitch make an equal contribution to the value and impact of the final work of art.
Q: “What part of the process of making a quilt gives you the greatest pleasure?”
KK: Unalloyed pleasure is in the imagining of the final product. But then comes the hard work--turning that vision into actuality. Like all dreams, it doesn't work out exactly as one would wish. Instead, there are unexpected glitches and the imagined product must be modified step by step before it can become reality. It’s not unlike when you first fall in love--who you think that person is has only nominal resemblance to that person's real self. Turning an initial attraction into a sustainable relationship takes a lot of hard work.
Q: “You have been making quilts for fourteen years now. How has your artwork changed over that time?”
KK: I began by making patchwork jackets and made one quilt from a design created by someone else. Doing that, I realized that I wanted to work on designs I made myself.
Quite soon I stopped making quilts from commercial fabrics, and began using fabrics friends and I had dyed and painted, as well as repurposing fabrics from garments. These quilts were abstract, and mainly dealt with color, composition, and design.
After a few years I began focusing on figures, first making quilted line drawings, later painting figures and quilting them, and that work evolved to using stitches to add meaning rather than just texture.
Just within the past few months,-my artwork has significantly shifted once more. I am painting faces, but they are more abstract. The quilts are tall and narrow, painted on canvas. I’m using opaque paint, instead of transparent inks, and the stitching is less functional than decorative. It’s a BIG change, so I’m calling them scrolls. I will post some on my website as soon as I am able.
Q: “Who or what has had the most influence on your artwork?”
KK: My inner muse. It's never satisfied with the last thing I've done. It demands that I not be content just doing what's been successful in the past, but keep reinventing myself, trying new things, even changing my style, using different materials, or approaching them differently.
Q: “Do you now or have you ever worked in another medium? If yes, which one? In what ways if any did it help you transition to art quilting?”
KK: After graduating from college with a degree in Art, I worked as a studio artist in the 1960’s and ’70’s, painting and drawing, designing and sewing clothing. In the 1980's, my medium was art photography. I developed and printed my own color photos, layered and collaged them onto massive 8' x 5' canvases, to which I added paint. The only thing missing from these artworks was stitch. For the next 20 years I worked as a clinical psychologist before returning to studio art. You might say my interest in people was honed in that work. I can’t specify any one of these endeavors as having helped me transition to art quilting. Rather, I see all of them as threads in the complicated fabric of my life.
Q: “Approximately how long does it take you to create an artwork?”
KK: Between 6 months to a year. I’m working on making smaller quilts, which I hope will take less time.
Q: “Approximately how many hours a week do you devote to quilt making?”
KK: Between 30 and 40 hours a week in art-related activities, which also includes work at my computer.
KK: For my quilts picturing people, I hope the viewer will connect in some way with what is pictured. Many of these quilts tell a story, and can also evoke an emotional connection. The initial reaction can lead to closer examination of the painting and stitching, on which I spend a great deal of time.
Q: “How and why have you chosen to express your creative energies in the medium of layered fabric?”
KK: From early childhood I have loved drawing and painting. I also sewed and played with fabrics most of my life. In the past several years I have explored how to effectively combine the two mediums, and continue to experiment with ways that both paint and stitch contribute to the texture and meaning in a quilt.
Q: “What do you consider your greatest challenge when working with this medium?”
KK: Making sure that both paint and stitch make an equal contribution to the value and impact of the final work of art.
Q: “What part of the process of making a quilt gives you the greatest pleasure?”
KK: Unalloyed pleasure is in the imagining of the final product. But then comes the hard work--turning that vision into actuality. Like all dreams, it doesn't work out exactly as one would wish. Instead, there are unexpected glitches and the imagined product must be modified step by step before it can become reality. It’s not unlike when you first fall in love--who you think that person is has only nominal resemblance to that person's real self. Turning an initial attraction into a sustainable relationship takes a lot of hard work.
Q: “You have been making quilts for fourteen years now. How has your artwork changed over that time?”
KK: I began by making patchwork jackets and made one quilt from a design created by someone else. Doing that, I realized that I wanted to work on designs I made myself.
Quite soon I stopped making quilts from commercial fabrics, and began using fabrics friends and I had dyed and painted, as well as repurposing fabrics from garments. These quilts were abstract, and mainly dealt with color, composition, and design.
After a few years I began focusing on figures, first making quilted line drawings, later painting figures and quilting them, and that work evolved to using stitches to add meaning rather than just texture.
Just within the past few months,-my artwork has significantly shifted once more. I am painting faces, but they are more abstract. The quilts are tall and narrow, painted on canvas. I’m using opaque paint, instead of transparent inks, and the stitching is less functional than decorative. It’s a BIG change, so I’m calling them scrolls. I will post some on my website as soon as I am able.
Q: “Who or what has had the most influence on your artwork?”
KK: My inner muse. It's never satisfied with the last thing I've done. It demands that I not be content just doing what's been successful in the past, but keep reinventing myself, trying new things, even changing my style, using different materials, or approaching them differently.
Q: “Do you now or have you ever worked in another medium? If yes, which one? In what ways if any did it help you transition to art quilting?”
KK: After graduating from college with a degree in Art, I worked as a studio artist in the 1960’s and ’70’s, painting and drawing, designing and sewing clothing. In the 1980's, my medium was art photography. I developed and printed my own color photos, layered and collaged them onto massive 8' x 5' canvases, to which I added paint. The only thing missing from these artworks was stitch. For the next 20 years I worked as a clinical psychologist before returning to studio art. You might say my interest in people was honed in that work. I can’t specify any one of these endeavors as having helped me transition to art quilting. Rather, I see all of them as threads in the complicated fabric of my life.
Q: “Approximately how long does it take you to create an artwork?”
KK: Between 6 months to a year. I’m working on making smaller quilts, which I hope will take less time.
Q: “Approximately how many hours a week do you devote to quilt making?”
KK: Between 30 and 40 hours a week in art-related activities, which also includes work at my computer.
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