Art Quill Studio

Autumn Etude • 21" x 14" • cloth, dye • ©2012 Jennifer Libby Fay

If it weren’t for my friends and fellow textile artists, Dotti Day and Joanne Salz (who is, sadly websiteless), I would not be the artist (or person) I am today.

Our friendship is supported by our desire to make art, our love of textiles and our passion (some would say obsession) for learning and inspiration.

In other words, the three of us never met a workshop we didn’t want to take. And so it was that we attended the biennial Surface Design Association Conference held in Minneapolis last June. While Joanne was busy felting the most exquisite miniature books with Chad Alice Hagan, Dotti and I attended Marie-Therese Wisniowski’s workshop on Disperse Dyes.

My workshop workspace • ©2011 Jennifer Libby Fay

Marie-Terese is an excellent teacher. Each day we had demonstrations and exercises that naturally built upon each other. This made learning practically effortless. It also insured nobody felt overwhelmed or left behind which kept the pace energetic. But the stroke of brilliance was this: every morning and every afternoon, Marie-Therese would visit each artist and ask to see the results of their exercises. She’d ask few questions, answer any questions that came up, offer encouragement and issue a challenge. "What if you try this…?" she’d say, or “I’d like to see you do a couple more of these…"

I loved it.

So you can imagine how thrilled and honored I am to be featured on Marie-Therese’s Art Quill Studio blog! I encourage you to take a few minutes to check it out, and not just the part about me. There is a wealth of information there, for instance, her downloadable Glosary of Terms and Fabrics is a fantastic resource.

Art Quill Studio Blog