Wednesday 30 November 2011

One of a Kind for Inspiration

Yesterday, I was in Toronto for a meeting with a group of women I know, and I stopped by the One of a Kind Christmas Craft Show and Sale. I went for a big hit of inspiration in general, and to see the fibre artists specifically. I came away with much more that I anticipated.

I had a nice little chat with Maggie Vanderweit, whose wonderful work you may see here. She works out of a studio in Fergus, and I saw her trunk show at our Guild meeting last March. Her journey and work are amazing. I've seen her and her work around the region, but usually in bits and pieces. Seeing a large number of her pieces yesterday in her booth really gave me a sense of what is possible for a fibre artist.

There were a few other fibre artists as well:
  • Diane Stewart glues various bits of fabric onto a background into a landscape. Though she uses no sewing to accomplish her work, it is really something to see.
  • Kalyna Pidwerbesky uses felting, beading, handstitching and wonderful colours to create pieces from her heart and soul. Her work is featured on her website here.
  • Valerie Page actually had quilts for sale. What a treat. She uses vibrant colours to create warmth under her quilts. And she's designed a tea cozy to keep your pot of tea warm for three hours.
  • Noelle Hamlyn does a variety of fibre art, which you may view on her website, along with her very cute pocketbook purses. Very clever.
Several other artists also caught my eye:
  • Andrew Collett's landscape photography is very striking and beautiful. Photos of beautiful scenery from all over Canada. Makes me wonder how he gets those shots. His work is right up my alley.
  • Stephen Yau paints nature in a slightly dreamy style that I really enjoyed looking at. I was looking closely at his technique to see how I might use it in my own work.
  • And finally, Marie-Joel Turgeon, who makes ceramic quilts. See them here. Fantastic artistic interpretation of quilts in a ceramic version. I loved it.

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