Realistic fabric portraits have become a popular aspect of fabric art and quilt making. It is a favorite with traditional quilters as well as fabric artists. Award winning artist, quilt maker, author, and teacher, Marilyn Belford, teaches the basic techniques along with tips and tricks to successfully create these portraits in fabric. Here’s a chance to meet the artist and see a bit into her motivation, loves and lifestyle.
Dawn Goldsmith (DG): Have you always been a quilter or how did you come to the art of fabric portraits?
Marilyn Belford (MB) Until the day my husband and I retired and moved up into the boondocks of upper New York State I was a professional artist residing and showing in New York City and elsewhere. I did mostly abstract and conceptual art. I was aghast when a dear friend of mine from Greece, who claimed she could read tea leaves, declared she could see me doing realistic work in my golden years. However, here I am doing exactly that -- and loving it!
DG: You went from abstract to realist?
MB: Most people call me a realist. I consider myself more of an expressionist. My main concern when making my fabric art is the emotional impact. In my Women of Legend series, as well as in most of my other work, I like to express the emotion behind the subject matter. I will shift and warp a line or color from its “real” form to produce the emotional state I am searching for.
DG: Your Women of Legend Series does more than depict women. There’s an energy, a drama in each portrait and I can’t help but think of some of the work of the old masters.
MB: I have a penchant for the dramatic. The music of Beethoven has the right amount of ‘sturm und drang’ to keep me happy. Many people ask me why, in my Women of Legend series, I chose the women I did…. fairly ferocious women. Well, nice women do not make news.
DG: But why chose fabric?
MB: I use fabric much as the painter uses his pots of paint. My stash is huge and looks like Swiss cheese. It is scattered all over the house (permissible since my husband passed away several years ago). I no longer invite people for meals because my dining room is my major workspace, and I do not want to have to clear it off for entertaining.
Purchasing fabric is a passion with me. I will travel 60 miles in one direction to find a piece of fabric with just the right color and texture to fill a 2 inch space on my work. Of course, I make an outing of the affair, traveling with friends and dining out. When I purchase fabric most of the other clientele look askance at my collection of colors and pleasantly ask, "what are you going to make with THAT?” I select fabric that hints at chin stubble, varicose veins, and five o'clock shadow. Store owners hide under the front counter when they see me coming, for I walk into the store and will ask “where do you keep your ‘bloody’ fabric?”
DG: Do you use multi-media or embellishments in your portraits?
MB: I do not use any paint, inks, or dyes in my work. This is not to say that I disapprove of their use. I love the work of those that use them. My space is small, limiting me to the type of dying that I could do. Plus, there are just so many hours in a day, and I have to make the decision of preparing my own fabric, or applying them to my artwork. My choice is to apply them. Also, finding the appropriate piece of fabric in a ready-made is a challenge I enjoy.
DG: Please tell us a bit about the technical side of your creations.
MB: I use fusible web, the lightweight double sided kind. The fabric is all cotton. The threads are mixed, but I like to keep them as thin as possible. I threadpaint with them. Interesting effects can be achieved by using them intermingled, and their fine thin weight helps keep them from looking overly heavy. Still, I like to rely more on the fabric to make my statement than on the threadpainting.
DG: How do you find time to teach?
MB: Teaching is another passion of mine. I teach online at Quilt University, www.quiltuniversity.com and various local shops. I also travel far and wide to give workshops and lectures at shows, and for guilds. I like to tell my students to be adventuresome, to experiment, to go with their own inner flow, and most of all, to enjoy. AIC101
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