I have been so neglectful on my blog posts. No real reason just had not thought about anything to write about. So here I am today to say Hello my friends and get this going again. Introductions please.
For those that know me personally you can skip this part. I have considered myself an artist since I was a small child. Being raised in a large family it was my way of sneaking extra time with our artist mother. Under her encouragement and a sprinkle of sewing knowledge from my grandmother I thrived and blossomed. I also enjoyed tramping thru the woods finding everything fascinating and colorful.
I then attended art school with an intention to soak up as much as possible. First year was a total immersion into all types of art making with no consideration of major field of study. By the end of this year, I was able to declare graphic design as my major. I continued taking electives in other fields such as painting, printmaking, ceramics and fiber arts. All of these classes were interesting, but I didn’t want to be the starving artist either.
After college, family life and a non-creative job, I started painting again but struggled, not meeting the quality I envisioned to what I could produce. I picked up cross stitch as a stress releasor but soon got bored with preprinted kits. Having work friends who quilted I was invited to join them on a retreat. While there I took a workshop in free form ribbon embroidery, taught by Judith Baker Montano. I worked thru the steps of creating an imagined underwater seascape, then got my ah-ha moment and decided to use fabric collage as my medium to create my art.
This is a collage of batik fabrics for the leaves, organza for the windowpanes, embroidered yarn for the styles of the windows, trim for the white flowers, embroidery and bead work. This was my next step in exploring after taking the workshop. I found my style in this new form of art making and have not looked back since. I find it meditative to stitch the small details and use a mix of fabric, thread, beads and trims to convey nature. I am inspired by Impressionist paintings and love the use of small things that give the impression of nature. I do want you to see the joy I receive from creating and the beauty of nature.
Here are a few more recent pieces I have completed but I will be updating my gallery pages with what I have been up to lately. Please take a look at my sight and send me a message if you have any questions.
Monet Mood 12 X 12 fabric collage and Inktense colored pencil $450.00
Twisted Seaweed 12 X 12 fabric collage, organza ribbon, hand dyed trim, silk ribbon embroidery, bead embroidery and hand embroidery $450.00
Prairie Spring 12 X 6 fabric collage on stretched canvas, Inktense colored pencil, hand embroidery, silk flowers and bead embroidery $500.00
jackie keirnan hale 