About
Artist’s Statement
My art is designed to take advantage of the unique characteristics of textiles, fibers, and related materials. I employ a variety of surface design techniques and both hand and machine stitching. Most of my recent work is metaphorical or abstract.
My work honors the tradition of patchwork quilt making in America. I don’t try to make my art look like it was done in different medium; it’s a quilt, looks like a quilt, proud to be a quilt, and hangs on the wall as it deserves to.
The development of my artistic voice is, like the rest of me, a work in progress. .
Techniques
If you are not a quilter, you might be interested knowing a little about the techniques that are used. These are terms you will find in the descriptions of my work.
A quilt is defined as layers of fabric held together with stitching.
Hand-dyeing and over-dyeing: Many of my quilts start with nothing but plain white fabric. I use Procion MX dyes on both silk and cotton. A length of fabric may be over-dyed any number of times to get the effect I want.
Discharge: Removing the color from fabric with some kind of bleach, either on selected areas or randomly to get the look I want.
Pole-dyed and thread-resisted Shibori: An ancient Japanese technique adapted by some modern textile artists. The fabric (often silk) may be wrapped on a pole and/or stitched or tied before dyeing and/or discharge to get the desired pattern.
Dextrin resist: Potato or corn dextrin (powders) mixed with water to get a paste which is then selectively applied to the fabric to keep the dye or bleach from penetrating that area. Much of my discharged cotton fabric has been resisted with dextrin, which is washed out after the process is complete.
Pieced: Fabric cut up into smaller pieces in order to sew them back together with seams to make a larger piece.
Appliqued: Cutting fabric up into smaller pieces which are then attached to the quilt surface. There’s always the problem of how to keep the raw edges from fraying. I prefer to fuse with adhesive; or burn them over a small flame, which not only seals the edge, but gives a naturalistic look. Or I may just let the edges fray as an element of the design.
Machine quilting: Stitching the layers of the quilt together on a home sewing machine (I usually use a Bernina). All my quilting is freemotion, which means it is hand-quided by me. I never use programmed designs. The quilting adds background texture and interest; and in my work is often a planned element of the overall design of the piece.
Gallery Representation
Rhonda Schaller Studio
547 West 27th Street, Suite 529
New York, New York 10001
Selected Exhibitions
2007 Ricky Tims' MicroCosmos Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow
2007 LowerTown Quilt Walk
2007 Stretching the Threads
2007 PAQA-South Art Quilts: Markings
2006 ‘Of Ill Repute’, 555 Gallery, Detroit, MI
2006 Small Works II, Ayer Lofts Gallery, Lowell, MA
2006 Expressions: The Art Quilt; traveling through 2008
2006 SAQA Fiber Renaissance (invitational); traveling through 2008
2004 Expressions in Textiles, New Haven, CT
2003–2005 Art in Embassies Program, United States Embassy, Islamabad
2002 International Quilt Festival, Houston, TX 2001 Decorative Mathematics: The Geometry of Quilting, Athens, GA
1999 Quilts at the Crossroads, Flint, MI
Professional Associations
Studio Art Quilt Associates
Surface Design Association
Contemporary Art Institute of Detroit
Education
BA, Hunter College of the University of the City of New York