Spotlight on Kathy Tidswell

Kathy Tidswell, from Burtts Corner NB, is the first Atlantic Canada artist to feature her 2019 SAQA Spotlight Auction contribution.

Blowing in the Breeze by Kathy Tidswell (2019) w6" x h8"

Here's what Kathy told us about her contribution:

KT: I sun printed on metallic paint in shades of blue and copper and stitched in metallic threads around the sun printed leaf shapes using blue and copper on the inverse colours.

You can read more about Kathy Tidswell and her artwork on her website Kathy Tidswell Fibre Artist, and on our own 2018 feature
Kathy Tidswell Interview: Painter, Quilter, Teacher.

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The Spotlight Auction is an opportunity for all SAQA members to have their work showcased at the 2019 SAQA Conference in San Jose, California. The pieces are auctioned at the conference with proceeds going to SAQA's exhibition programs. An online participation form must be completed before March 1, 2019 and artwork must arrive in Virginia by March 8, 2019. Further information is available here.

The Spotlight Auction is also an opportunity for SAQA Atlantic members to have their work featured on the SAQA Atlantic blog, to be enjoyed by those of us not attending the annual conference. If you've contributed to the 2019 auction, please let us have a sneak peek at your piece!

Laureen van Lierop interview: Embracing her inner fool

Yellow Bowl (detail) by Laureen van Lierop (2017) w8" x h9" 

Laureen van Lierop is a multi-talented textile artist from Halifax, Nova Scotia. Her work reflects her sense of humour as well as her love of embroidery, nature and gardening. Laureen has a BA in dance from the University of Waterloo and is also an award-winning writer. 

Laureen’s first solo show was titled Nature and Nurture. She has contributed to the Nova Scotia textile art scene by curating or co-curating several exhibits, for example: Healing Gardens (2005), Talking Threads (2001) and Layered Intentions (2000). More recently, she played a lead role in organizing the latest SAQA retreat and has volunteered to organize next year’s event.

For over ten years Laureen has volunteered at Halifax’s Out of the Cold homeless shelter, one of her many non-textile volunteer activities.

How would you describe your textile work?

I create stitched pieces with embroidery, applique, beads and bits of lace, paper and found objects. My work tends to be small. Often it’s meant to drape against a wall. Other times, it’s three dimensional. Dolls, vessels and books are my favourite forms of this expression. As I work, I include some hints of a story, but I rarely work with explicit narrative subjects. 

My work hasn’t any political or social message. Instead, I search for the comical or whimsical. I believe that humour softens life’s blows, allowing difficult experiences to become a journey to better relationships.

Vine Girls by Laureen van Lierop (2015) w10" x h12" 

Describe your journey towards becoming an artist who works with textiles. 

I learned embroidery as a four-year-old from my paternal Oma, who was a Master Embroiderer in Holland. Stitching later took a back seat as I expressed my creativity through dance and floral arranging. Eventually, seeking a creative outlet as a young mother, I moved back into textiles.

It began with a small cabinet of outgrown children’s clothing. I sat on the nearby stairs to stitch while my two young children were in the bathtub. That worked out well, the light was good and I was close enough to hear what was going on in the tub.

I joined quilt guilds but never felt quite at home there. My work evolved differently. Even my vocabulary of techniques became different. So nearly 20 years ago I was involved in starting a group originally called the Fibre Arts Collective (now unofficially known as the Quilt Mafia). I also began curating, as a means of creating opportunities for diverse textile artwork to be shown. 

Since 2014, I’ve been following contemporary embroiderer Karen Ruane’s online courses. Karen has opened a huge door for me and has had a major influence on my stitch vocabulary, composition, texture and titivation.

Tell us about your process for creating. Where do you find your inspiration and how do you get from that to a final product?

My work is inspired by my love of flowers, nature and gardening. I have 10 years of my own sketches for inspiration.

But each piece really begins with colour. Whether I’m working on a piece for the wall, a doll or a book, I choose a group of colours that appeal and create a huge pile of various materials that might work. I walk around it for days or weeks until I get an urge to edit to a smaller pile (and repeat). When the collection feels more manageable, I put the materials into a nice basket or container and let it simmer, often looking through my sketchbooks for ideas. Sooner or later I pick up a needle and get stitching, often starting with a curved line or two, and then working as the spirit moves me. I enjoy the controlled chaos of the creative process and welcome an unexpected left turn. If I get too intellectual or intentional the work begins to tighten and feel wrong.

Path One by Laureen van Lierop (2017) w11" x h"7 

Do you have a studio, or do you work wherever you can find a spot? 

I’ve always worked wherever I could find a spot: the stairway, the space in front of the washing machine, our bedroom. One day I realized the family room was no longer being used by anyone and I seized it. At last I have a studio! My worktable sits by a beautiful north-facing window overlooking the garden. I adore it.

What are you currently working on and why?

Lately I’ve been embroidering little narrative sketches onto hankies. I’ve always avoided explicit narrative, but as my writing skills improve, my urge to do little stories is increasing.

I also have two other things going right now. One is a stitch response to rose-hips and mountain ash berries squished onto a piece of old cotton; the other, blue hydrangeas pounded into paper.

How has your life path influenced your work?

My BA in dance is a major influence. Good choreography and theatre staging, and the history of theatre and costume design are all in the back of my mind as I fool around.

And my husband, Steve Mannell, keeps my work clear and real. He’s a constant source of inspiration, education and clarification. His brain is crisp and engaged. He helps me clarify my intention, work out my composition, clear out the detritus and know when my idea is done. 

String of spring by Laureen van Lierop (2018) h4" x 4' long

Where can your work be seen?

I try to post every completed work on my blog and on Instagram. I show whenever I can wiggle into an exhibition. I recently joined the Textile Artist Collective and rejoined SAQA to participate in group exhibits. One goal for this winter is to create a gallery page with prices attached. 

Who have been your major influences and how?

Georg Balanchine, a Russian ballet choreographer looms large. In 1967, he created Jewels, a suite of four highly technical dance solos, each a very pure interpretation of the music. His goal was beauty for beauty’s sake, without emotion or narrative. That has permitted me to create work that has no political, social or environmental commentary. The world needs resting spots and I attempt to provide a quiet place to do more than survive in.

Path Two by Laureen van Lierop (2018) w13" x h23" 

What fibre artists are you currently interested in, and why?

I really like Michelle Kingdom and Tilleke Schwarz. Both are masters of narrative stitching, but with very different themes, using different techniques. 

Closer to home, I’m also inspired by visual artist Alex Schofield, a good friend and neighbour. Her work, process and intellectual rationale are refreshing and energizing for me. 

Do you engage in other artistic or creative endeavors?

Writing is a big part of my life. I write poetry and children’s stories. I also produce a comic book, Hot Flash Woman, about the zany adventures of Hot Flash Woman and her side kick, Steamy, as they encounter oppression and struggle with menopausal hot flashes.  

My most memorable experience as an artist was winning the Joyce Barkhouse Award for unpublished children’s writing. Reading the first chapter of my book, Beach Meadow Friends, to a large audience at the awards ceremony was a fabulous experience!

Vessel One by Laureen van Lierop (2015) w4.5" x h11" 

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You can read more about SAQA artist Laureen van Lierop on her blog, Laureen van Lierop. Follow Laureen on Instagram.

Helene Blanchet's Calgary Days on exhibit in Sydney, Cape Breton until February 28th

Don't miss this opportunity to view Helene's work: 

My show "Calgary Days" is on in Sydney at the Cape Breton Centre for Craft and Design until Feb 28. If you're in town, check it out! 

Read more about Hélène Blanchet on our 2016 artist interview, Folk Art in Big Nature.

Saint John Arts Centre: Last chance to see SAQA Atlantic touring exhibition,Transitions, opening January 11th

SAQA Atlantic's travelling juried show, Transitions, will soon be on display in the Frazee Gallery of the Saint John Arts Centre. Transitions is one of four Centre exhibitions opening on Friday January 11th. Please join the artists for the opening reception.

What:        Transitions, the SAQA Atlantic travelling exhibition

When:       January 11 - March 8, 2019            

Opening:   Friday, January 11, 2019 from 5:30-7:30PM

Where:      The Saint John Arts Centre

                  20 Peel Plaza, Saint John, NB

                  (506) 633-4870

Hours:       Tuesday to Saturday 9:00-5:00

                   Monday & Sunday      Closed

Transitions Artists

Helene Blanchet - Julea Boswell - Grace Butland - Brigitte Dimock

Cathy Drummond - Kristi Farrier - Audrey Feltham 

Linda Finley - Heather Kellerman - Susan Lilley 

Heather Loney - Kate Madeloso - Regina Marzlin 

Holly McLean - Fiona Oxford - Deb Plestid 

Anne Morrell Robinson - Ann Schroeder - Kathy Tidswell

Read more about the SAQA Atlantic regional textile art show, Transitions, on our blog.

Cathy Drummond introduces Displaced

We were delighted to learn that Mahone Bay, NS artist Cathy Drummond's work has been accepted into SAQA's global exhibition, Forced to Flee. SAQA members throughout the world were encouraged "to illustrate the issues surrounding the global refugee crises, impacts on families and communities, the stress placed on host countries, and the need for new initiatives, funding, and international cooperation to find solutions to the crisis." 

Cathy's art quilt, Displaced, is one of the 36 pieces from ten countries that were accepted from among the 136 entries. It was the only piece from Canada. Well done Cathy!

Displaced, by Cathy Drummond (2018) w30"xh25"

We asked Cathy Drummond to tell us about her Inspiration for Displaced:

Cathy: A quite beautiful news photo of a small group of people walking along a road first attracted my attention. Only after a few moments did I realize I was looking at two Syrian families fleeing for their lives. 

Displaced (detail)

I couldn't stop thinking about the families in that photo. Their options are so limited and their futures so bleak. I began Displaced by sketching individual people, but soon began thinking about the difficulty of imagining each individual when there are over 65 million of them! How do the refugees keep their sense of self, given their de-humanizing  experience? 

These thoughts led me to instead cut random pieces of cloth, some vaguely human shaped, others not. (Refugee routes must be strewn with abandoned belongings.) I wanted to express dehumanization, exhaustion and grief, as well as the closed doors between displaced people and a new life.

The Forced to Flee exhibition will debut at the Ruth Funk Center for Textile Arts at the Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne, Florida: May 25 – August 24, 2019, and then travel internationally. Follow the exhibition's travel's here.

More textile works on exhibit in Annapolis Royal until December 20th

SAQA artists Penny Berens and Grace Butland are showing their work in Five - The Artist Way Collective Show, hanging until December 20th at the Annapolis Royal Community Art Centre (ARCAC). The show features works by five artists: three fibre artists and two painters.

The show will hang concurrently with the annual ARCAC members' exhibit, also featuring textile work by Penny Berens.

Exhilarating. Informative. Productive. Exhausting. Inspiring. Fun.

Artwork by Jeanine Gunn

These are just some of the words that describe SAQA Atlantic's fourth retreat, held last weekend in Debert, Nova Scotia.

Fourteen SAQA members attended, including new member Jeanine Gunn, from Antigonish County, NS.

By day, we learned about preparing proposals in the art world, whether for a grant, a show or a residency. This session was thoughtfully led by Melanie Colosimo, director and curator of the Anna Leonowens Gallery. 

We listened to lightning talks by Kristi Farrier, Holly McLean, Anne Morrell Robinson and Christine Nielsen. Regina Marzlin presented her experiences with the SAQA Mentorship Program, tempting many of us to sign up. And together we planned some exciting next steps for SAQA Atlantic:

• Holly McLean will set up an Instagram account.
• Helene Blanchet will maintain our blog's Call for Entry page.
• Susan Lilley will begin a series of Artist Studio series on our blog.
• Regina Marzlin will create a Facebook page for our region.
• Helene Blanchet will coordinate the next SAQA trunk show tour.
• Our next regional retreat will take place next fall. Once again, Laureen van Lierop has agreed to coordinate the program.
• Kristi Farrier will replace Regina Marzlin as our regional representative, beginning March 1, 2019.
• We decided to form a regional critique group using Zoom technology. Regina Marzlin will set us all up with the technology and prepare the first meeting for mid January. Laureen van Lierop and Jeanine Gunn will be the first facilitators.

But the retreat wasn't all work. By evening, we kicked back with wine, cheese and chocolates, showing and talking about our work. Throughout the event, we continued to build relationships across the region.

Overall it was a great weekend, the mood was constructive, the level of volunteering exceptional and we all appreciated the various learning opportunities provided. 

If you missed this year's retreat, stay tuned for information about the next one, tentatively planned for autumn 2019.

Artwork by Helene Blanchet

Artwork by Cathy Drummond

Artwork by Kristi Farrier

Printwork by Linda Mackie Finley

Artwork by Regina Marzlin

Laureen van Lierop's sketchbook

Artwork by Holly McLean