Susan Lapham: Studio Tour and More

 

Susan Lapham, I Heart My Brothers
2021, 40"x40"

Susan Lapham lives in Virginia, summers in Cape Breton, and has chosen Atlantic Canada as her secondary SAQA region.    

Her contemporary quilts have been described as a lively dance between steady geometry and sparkling movement. Her work has been exhibited in Form, Not Function; Quilts=Art=Quilts; Visions Art Museum; and Quilt National.  Her award winning Playland series has received Best of Show, First Place, and Piecing Awards.  

Playland 1, 2020, 83"x82"

Born in Jerusalem, Susan lived in the Middle East and North Africa for the first 12 years of her life. Her degrees in Cartography and Survey Statistics led her to work in the US government and non-profit organizations as a mapmaker, statistician, manager and senior executive for nearly 40 years. She is currently Principal Investigator on US National Institutes for Health grants focusing on behavioral health and is Director of a sixty-year longitudinal study of human development and aging.

Along the way, she taught herself to quilt and obviously brings the same level of energy and discipline to her art.  When I asked Susan about artists who have inspired her work, her list included the Spanish sculptor Eduardo Chillida, the Lebanese painter Saloua Raouda Choucair,  and the Americans Karl Benjamin and Frank Stella.   All of them are characterized by clean lines and bold use of colour.

Susan, could you describe your workspace?

My studio is a 24 by 40 foot addition at the back of our house overlooking our woods and garden.  It is open and airy with lots of room to breathe. My design wall takes up one whole wall plus half of another – a total of about 38 feet by 8 feet tall. The room is empty except for the design wall, my sewing machine, and two large cutting tables forming an “L” in the middle of the room. I love spending time in the studio and find that I can be as creative as my imagination allows because there are no distractions.

It seems very well-lit. What are the light sources?

I have five large floor to ceiling windows and six skylights that let in a lot of natural light.  There are 12 8-foot LED lights mounted on the ceiling which provide additional light on grey days.  I also have Ott Creative Curve lamps beside my sewing machine and on the cutting table.  

Where do you keep your fabrics and threads?

 I don’t keep a lot of fabric – just enough to keep creating.  Yardage is kept in a dark closet on open shelves organized by value and color. Scraps are kept in 3 baskets, also organized by color and value. I keep a small bin of leftover bits and units from previous pieces, and turn to it to start each subsequent project. If I need a small piece of fabric I’ll use my unsewn scraps next and only go to my yardage if I need a big chunk.

I bag the tiniest scraps for a friend to make dog beds or for garden mulch - nothing wasted!

I only keep a few spools of thread (Superior) which are organized on a rack on the wall. My philosophy is if I don’t use something for a year, it is donated, gifted or recycled. 

Aside from the emptiness, which is rather unusual for a quilter, are there other unique features?

One unusual aspect is that my husband does all my quilting on his long arm machine. He has his own space at the other end of the house so when I have a top ready for him to quilt, I just walk downstairs and hand it over to him. I am more than blessed with this arrangement!

Another great aspect of my studio is that I can easily take it on the road – literally! 

Every summer for the past couple of decades, my husband and I hop into the RV and head to Cape Breton where we spend several weeks at Broad Cove campground. I use the same portable sew easy table that I use in my home studio and bring the five small baskets of fabric scraps that I use daily. Since I’m a minimalist it’s easy to schlep my tools back and forth. As I can’t bring the huge design wall, I work on smaller pieces or I hang a sheet on the clothesline and just deal with the constant breeze.

I can also dye fabric there which I don’t often do at home. I actually learned to dye from Anne Schroeder, another Cape Breton artist, several years ago.

Susan's portable studio...

Does it make a difference if you are in open or cluttered space?

...and her outdoor studio

Being a minimalist at heart I’m most creative when I have no distractions. Complete silence (except for the birds, the whisper of trees, and ocean waves) and no visual distractions. So definitely no clutter, just a lot of space.  I only have out what I need when I need it and tend to tidy up before moving on to a new task.  

You mentioned that it's easy to bring your studio, but what about favourite gadgets?

I’m not really a gadget person. I have a simple straight stitch sewing machine and the tools I use can easily fit into one glass jelly jar that includes a seam ripper, Karen K Buckley perfect scissors, a pair of large scissors, paper scissors, tweezers, hera tool and "that purple thang" (a sort of stiletto). I have a second glass jelly jar that includes the tools I need for the sewing machine – brush, screwdriver, oil, machine needles, pipe cleaner, walking foot and quarter inch foot.

Except for rotary cutters that are on the portable cutting tables, and a couple of rulers that I mostly use for trimming up finished quilts, I don’t keep much else. My goal is to keep the studio and my studio practice as minimal as possible.  

Going back to your main studio, what does having this workspace mean for your processes, and how do you make the space work for you?

I love my studio and spend every possible moment I can in it! Having lots of space to move around, large cutting tables and a huge design wall give me the freedom I need to translate what’s in my head to fabric. Being a minimalist and staying organized allows me to be efficient which helps with deadlines!

If you had the chance, what change would make it your ultimate creative space?

Taller design walls. I tend to work very large – 8 feet by 8 feet.  I would love to work bigger at some point but my design walls are currently 8 feet tall so it would be hard to create something larger.

Is there a project that you’re currently working on, or are excited about starting that you can tell us about? 

While I love working with tiny bits of fabric to build enormous pieces, I also love spare work. I’m experimenting with some spare pieces and am excited to see where I can go with them.  

Clothesline design wall 

More of Susan's work can be seen on her website at susanjlapham.net

Her husband, John Tsiaperas, who does the longarm quilting of her quilts, can be found here.

Her quilt, "I Heart My Brothers" at the beginning of this post, can be seen soon at the Material III exhibition at the D'Art Centre in Norfolk Virgina.

Another quilt in her Oh Brother series, "David", can be seen as part of the SAQA Commotion exhibit in Atlantic Canada (stay tuned for dates of two venues in Nova Scotia this summer).

Playland #3, above, won the 2nd Place Award of Excellence at Form Not Function 2020 and Best of Show at Out of the Funk (Fiberarts Guild of Pittsburgh). 

5 Artists – 3 Shows – 1 Venue: Inverness County Centre for the Arts (ICCA)

Englishtown Spill by Alison Cowitz (w27”xh54”) 

Five SAQA Atlantic Canada members have joined forces to fill the three ICCA galleries with colour over the coming months. The exhibitions include: 

Place in Perspective by Hélène Blanchet, Alison Cowitz and Kristi Farrier; 

FLOCK by Anne Morrell Robinson; and 

A Sense of Place by Regina Marzlin. 

Don’t miss this exciting trio of shows in Inverness, Cape Breton!

Location:        16080 Highway 19, Inverness Nova Scotia

Reception:       7-9pm, Saturday, November 6, music by 

                          Cape Breton guitarist Brian Doyle.

Gallery hours:  Tuesday – Sunday from 12-5pm. 

Closing date:    January 15, 2022.

Man Plays Guitar While his Wife Dances in the Big Saskatchewan Prairies by Helene Blanchet (w36 “x h12”)

Place in Perspective: Hélène Blanchet, Margaree Valley CB, Kristi Farrier, Baddeck CB and Alison Cowitz, Calgary Alberta. 

Moody Crush by Kristi Farrier

HB: Place in Perspective is a dynamic exhibition resulting from a three-year collaboration between three artists.  The artwork both showcases our individual voices and reveals how our sense of place is wholly influenced by who we are and how we interpret and give meaning to a location.

FLOCK: Anne Morrell Robinson, Margaree Valley, CB 

O is for Ostritch by Anne Morrell Robinson
(w43"xh54")

AMR: Working in a series and exploring fabric collage allow me to just have fun playing with nature’s shapes and colours. Fun is something we all need in our lives as we adapt to the current changes in the world and our daily lives. Do the birds realize they are adapting to the changes or is it just instinct? Let’s find our place with as much joy as a bird soaring on the wind currents. 

A Sense of Place: Regina Marzlin, Antigonish NS 

RM: In these works, I try to capture the beauty of the nature around me by using actual plant material to print on fabric. My colour choices, placement and paint layering are my responses to the astonishing beauty of even the humblest weed. These works convey a sense of place and an awe of the details in nature in a tactile medium that shows the hand of the maker.

Dandelion Dreams by Regina Marzlin (w21”xh18”)

The Inverness County Centre for the Arts requires masking and proof of Covid-19 vaccination for all events. 

Susan Lilley: Geometrics (bound and unbound)

 

Geometrics 29: Power Lines
Susan Lilley, 2021 30"x30"

Susan Lilley’s solo show, Geometrics (bound and unbound) opens October 8 at the Chester Art Center.  The exhibition is of a series of work created over the last two years.

Now a resident of Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia, Susan was born in Quebec amidst a family of artists.  Although her art classes began at a very early age, it was only after a 30 year career in public health that she returned to art-making.

In 2010, Susan completed the City and Guilds of London Level 3 Certificate in Design and Craft. She is currently an active member of the Textile Artists Collective, the Lunenburg Art Society and SAQA Atlantic Canada.  

Susan has exhibited her work in numerous local, regional, national and international exhibitions. Geometrics (bound and unbound) is her third solo show.

Geometrics 2  Susan Lilley  2019 12"x12"

Q:   Susan, how would you describe your work?

My work is non-representational. I use strong colours and my own hand-dyed, repurposed fabrics, often featuring shibori or surface-design techniques. 

In my latest collection, Geometrics, all 30+ pieces were composed of strips of brightly-coloured fabric over-dyed in black to create bold, repeated, geometric patterns. I prepared the cotton for the black dyebath using a shibori technique called itajime, which involves folding the fabric, adding resists and using clamps to hold it all together, thus preventing dye penetration and creating the pattern. 

Q: What prompted you to choose this particular technique for your series?

Itajime both fascinates and challenges me. I’m drawn to it for several reasons: the “glow” effect of the blurred dye lines, the contrast of order with imperfection, and my inability to control the outcomes. Relinquishing control in this way, I, myself, am unbound. 

Traditionally, itajime involves only a single dye bath, often indigo or brown, leaving white patterning. I spent a couple of years previously experimenting with a more complex approach, layering colour over colour and pattern over pattern with multiple rounds of folding and dyeing. While I was able to make a few exciting pieces, I was more often disappointed with my results. 

This current series began as a way to become more skilled at itajime by simplifying my process: making many small studies, using narrow strips and a single colour (+black). I was also hoping to become more fluid and relaxed in my work and to develop my own style of itajime.

Geometrics 19  2021 12"x12"

Q: Had you worked in series before, and if so, how was this series different for you?

In the past, I generally made a few pieces expressing the same idea in different ways, but this is the first time I've intentionally set out to create a series. My plan at the outset was to make 20-25 small (12”x12”) studies, followed by a few larger pieces, an idea suggested by Cape Breton artist and friend Helene Blanchet.

Making so many small studies, guided by a few simple rules, was surprisingly both liberating and addictive. I approached each new piece knowing it didn’t have to be perfect, so I could relax and let go. And each completed study left me with a head full of “what ifs”, compelling me to go on to make another.

Geometrics 22 Susan Lilley 2021 12"x12"

Q:  Do you see this body of work as a departure from your earlier work?

I think this collection builds quite naturally on my previous work. The departure, in my mind, is the long-term commitment to developing a specific idea. During this two-year journey I have surpassed my initial goals and discovered my own unique approach to itajime.

Q:   Do you have plans for your work for the coming year? 

Itajime still fascinates me. I’ve not yet decided what my next challenge will be but I expect to use a similar, experimental approach, probably involving multiple colours and dyebaths. 

Geometrics 28: Spirit Ways 30"x30" 2021

Q: In addition to the show in Chester, where else can your work be seen?

I’m hoping to hang some of this work in the Bridgewater branch of the South Shore Public Libraries next winter. I generally have a piece or two hanging at the Lunenburg Art Gallery, changing every month from May to October. I also have two pieces in the SAQA Atlantic juried show, Commotions, which will be travelling around Atlantic Canada in the next year. And for those outside the region, I’ve recently taken to sharing my work on Instagram.

Geometrics 30: Making Do 2021 34"x39"

Susan's show, Geometrics (bound and unbound), opens with a reception from 5-7pm on Friday October 8th at the Chester Art Centre in Chester NS. The show runs until October 28th, however, gallery hours vary considerably from one day to the next:  

October 9,10,15,17,21,28 - Gallery open from 10am-4pm

October 14,16,20,22,23,24,27 - Gallery open from 5-7pm

The Gallery may be open at other times by chance or appointment. Contact Chester Art Centre at 902-275-5789 or info@chesterartcentre.ca before setting out.

Congratulations to Kathy Tidswell!

 

Bank Machine Blues by Kathy Tidswell 2005 29"x20"

 Bank Machine Blues has been selected for inclusion in Martha Sielman's new book about fibre art inspired by birds. This was no small feat, as Martha had to choose from over 1200 pieces submitted for her book.  

Kathy created Bank Machine Blues for the 2005 Grand National Juried Quilt Exhibition: Airborne.

Kathy explained:  "It was inspired by the then $20 bill.  I wanted to immortalize it but chose to make it in the colours of nature. The loons in the section above the  "bill"  represent the $20 bills that you take from the bank machine which seem to magically disappear.

I painted the background fabric and used commercial fabric for the mountains and trees.  The loons were made totally from thread using free motion embroidery and then attached. The serial number is the initials of my family and their age ranking. "

Martha Sielman's book will be published by Schiffer Publishing.

Cathy Drummond interview: From watercolour to textiles

Where Land Meets Sea by Cathy Drummond
(2019) w24xh18"

Cathy Drummond is a textile artist who lives on an island in Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia. She’s also an accomplished watercolour/mixed-media painter who, years ago, won a national competition to paint portraits of Canadian Forces women involved in NATO war exercises. Her artwork is now in the collection of the Canadian War Museum.

More recently, after a demanding career in the federal public service, Cathy was reborn as a textile artist.

Cathy Drummond is a member of Studio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA) and the Textile Artists Cooperative. She is also a member and former president of the Mahone Bay Quilters Guild and a writer for the SAQA Atlantic blog. Cathy has exhibited in juried shows throughout Atlantic Canada and internationally.

In this feature interview, Cathy tells us about her artistic journey.

Cathy, how would you describe your work?

My work is representational, often of landscapes. It varies in style from fairly realistic to loosely impressionistic, depending on the subject matter and the mood I want to convey. Increasingly, the painting skills I developed long ago are appearing in my quilts, adding another dimension to my artwork.

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

I had always painted. I began selling my watercolour and mixed media work in 1979, which led to a series of commissions. All that came to an end, though, when I joined the federal public service and found I had little time to paint.

Around the time of my retirement, I came across an exhibition of Laurie Swim’s textile artwork and experienced a eureka moment. I was fascinated by the richness and depth of colour possible with textiles and I had always sewn, so it seemed like a perfect fit. Laurie’s wonderful work inspired me to learn to quilt.

My Garden by the Sea
by Cathy Drummond (2020) 10" x10"

How has your life/upbringing influenced your work?

I was extremely shy as a small child and spent much time with my mother and grandmothers, who were all creative in their own ways. Though my mother and maternal grandmother both had careers, they also painted and were highly skilled at needlework. My other grandmother was a wonderful gardener. She took me on backroad journeys in the woods or on the shore. My father was the ultimate over-achiever, and all four role-models taught me not to give up on anything I start. That helps a lot when the creative process leaves me discouraged, as it sometimes does.

On Helen’s Walk, by Cathy Drummond
(2020) 12"x12" 

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

Most of my inspiration comes from nature -- the views out my window, the changing seasons and colours of the ocean and the woods. I usually work from a photograph I’ve taken, although sometimes I work from memory or invent a scene to convey a mood.

My process is continually evolving. At first, I used commercial fabrics and believed that using paint on quilts would be cheating. I worked studiously from a sketch or directly from a photo, and I built the scene from the top down. Now, I’m using much more hand-dyed, repurposed fabric and I’ve recently begun to paint my scene on plain cloth, building from there in any direction that appeals to me.

What was your experience in moving your watercolour skills to textiles?

Boys Love Mud by Cathy Drummond (2012)
w24" x h30"

Boys Love Mud was the first quilt I painted on. I turned to watercolour when I didn’t have the fabrics I needed to get the sky and faces right. Initially, I was concerned that the colour would fade or run, but I’ve since learned that after it has dried and been pressed with a hot iron, watercolour is fairly permanent on cotton fabric.

I have now experimented with various products and frequently use fabric paint, which I did, for example, to create the water in Hurricane. Fabric paint, like all acrylics, dries fast and stiffens the cloth if applied directly. What works well for me is to dilute the fabric paint and apply it to damp fabric. This way, the colours are absorbed into the cloth rather than staying on the surface.

Hurricane by Cathy Drummond (2021) w30" x h25"

More recently, I’ve also been using Inktense pencils, which are great for strengthening a line or adding a bit more shadow. When they’re wet and applied with a brush they act like watercolour but produce a more intense colour.

Once I began to use paint on my quilts, I discovered that it’s neither cheating nor unusual. Mickey Lawler’s book Skydyes: A Visual Guide to Fabric Painting is a really good book on technique.

Peggy and Helen at Book Club
by Cathy Drummond (2019) w20" x h16”

Where can readers see your work this year?

I generally have a piece or two on show in the Lunenburg Art Gallery. My piece, Displaced, is travelling with the SAQA juried exhibition, Forced to Flee, currently in Minnesota.

I also have two pieces, Hurricane and A Commotion of Coots, travelling around Atlantic Canada until 2023 in the SAQA Atlantic juried exhibition, Commotion, dates TBA.

Salt Marsh Sunset by Cathy Drummond
 (2020) 12"x12"

                                                                      _____

You can see more of Cathy Drummond’s textile artwork online on her Artwork Archive profile page.

Fogo Island residency for textile artist and printmaker Audrey Feltham

Audrey Feltham: Line reduction work, in progress

Audrey Feltham, from Deer Lake, NL, is serving a 5-week artist residency in Tilting, on Fogo Island, Newfoundland. 

AF: “My residency at Tilting will be time spent creating works on both textile and paper, deconstructing the objectification of the material. In doing so I hope to take the viewer to a place where abstraction allows one to see a specific object through new eyes. Like the word "artifact", the object itself will become barely recognizable. Rather, line, shape, colour and texture will be signposts to the viewer to create surfaces that speak to both emotion and place. I have no idea of the number of works I will create or the size. My intent is solely to fill my days with creating“.

One week into her residency, Audrey reported that her accommodation/studio space is a small, rustic, remote, 150-year-old house by the ocean. “There are two rooms downstairs...a kitchen and a small drawing room that is now a very small studio space. As you can see, I am using every available space, walls, floor, etc, to cope with lack of working space.”

Without radio, television or internet access, there are few distractions to keep Audrey from her artwork. So far, she has completed an edition of reduction block prints in her series Quotidian/culture/kitsch. 

Audrey Feltham: Coal shuttle/sugar spoon, reduction block print.

Audrey Feltham: Coal shuttle / sugar spoon on hand-dyed silk.

Learn more about Audrey Feltham at Atelier West Studios, and in our 2018 feature interview Audrey Feltham: Printmaker on paper and textile + stitch.

The Fogo Island Arts’ international residency program hosts artists on Fogo Island for terms of one to three months. Artists-in-residence are provided with accommodation and studio space, a weekly stipend and travel expenses. 

Welcome to Anne Morrell Robinson's new gallery in Big Intervale, Cape Breton

If you find yourself in Cape Breton be sure to visit Anne Morrell Robinson's brand new gallery. Housed in a beautiful new barn, the gallery incorporates wood salvaged from an old barn on the property, giving it a sense of both past and present. Currently, the gallery walls and hanging rails display Anne’s numerous quilts, a riot of colour and quilt styles.

When the pandemic is over, Anne hopes the gallery will be used for exhibitions by other Atlantic Canadian quilters and textile artists. The space is also a perfect venue for a retreat, with an attached classroom and a cozy lodge just down the the road.

Anne always wanted to have other artists enjoy and be inspired by the beauty, peace and quiet that she enjoys in Big Intervale, Cape Breton. It took a long time to reach that goal but at last it’s a reality!

The gallery is currently open by chance or appointment. Please call a day or more ahead of your planned visit. (Note that there is no cellular service in the area.)

Learn about Anne Morrell Robinson's studio, shop and workspace in her 2019 photo essay, Welcome to my Studio.

Visit Anne Morrell Roboinson's website, Kingross Quilts and Fibre Arts.