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01 October 2024
Liz, a local textile artist, “Took to the stage,” at our Threads gathering and - what a treat we had!
An eloquent and humorous speaker, Liz entertained us with stories and explanations of how her “beautiful creations” came about.
Liz has been involved with patch- work and machine embroidery for over 25 years and loves making “mad things!” Working between sketching and appliqué, drawing inspiration from holidays and family, Liz’s work is diverse, intricate and sometimes humorous. Covid and copious amounts of shirting fabric paved the way to coping emotionally through Lockdown, culminating in her quilt of 365 small patches depicting everything from politicians and literary characters to Nature’s infinite inspirations. Apparently there was the occasional day when inspiration was hard to find. An amusing anecdote of one patch having to be censored will surely remain with the audience!
Another annual diary was created in 2023. Again an idea evolved for every day - each taking between 2-3 hours to complete. Her characters were amazing and her dedication to completing each piece has to be worthy of admiration.
Liz also spoke of her love of reading, particularly poetry. Thomas Hardy is one of her favourites. Her love of Tudor costumes and the used of velvet, inspired Liz to work with this fabric. A beautiful “Moth” hanging with its incredible shades and textures had us enthralled. Inspired by Hardy’s ‘An August Midnight’ Liz overcame her long standing “Moth Phobia” to produce this evocative piece of work.
It was the discovery of the work of a German entomologist, naturalist and scientific illustrator by the name of Maria Merian which pushed Liz on to produce further work on insects (caterpillars, beetles, butterflies) flora and fauna.
As well as talking about her work, Liz gave advice on use of paints, and sewing tools, particularly the use of the Couching foot
and the Joys of the Tailor's tack foot which, was fortunately returned to her after its journey around the audience!
LIz’s talk concluded with the showing of a quilt entitled, “The Adventures of Super Mum.” She had transformed a lovingly made cartoon drawn by her son when young, into something which was now preserved as a precious memory.
Liz’s talk kept us totally interested and entertained. Her enthusiasm was tangible. As she said, “Every day is a labour of love,”
That statement was definitely obvious in her work! A fabulous speaker, hopefully she will return in the future and regale us with more stories and fascinating work.
Thank you Liz.
L.K.
Our October 2024 gallery
