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  • Home
    • Project Description
    • Meet the Artists
  • Challenges
    • Challenge 1-7 >
      • Challenge One - Floral
      • Challenge Two - Forest Floor
      • Challenge Three - Through the Gate
      • Challenge Four - Laundry Day
      • Challenge Five - Close Quarters
      • Challenge Six - vessel
      • Challenge Seven - Vessels
    • Challenges 8-14 >
      • Challenge Eight - Leavings
      • Challenge Nine - La Foce - Pergola
      • Challenge Ten - Spanish Guitar
      • Challenge Eleven - Timeline
      • Challenge Twelve - Joy
      • Challenge Thirteen - Finding Tranquility
      • Challenge Fourteen - Field View at Sunset
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      • Challenge 15 - Winter
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Studio Notes

"It's almost like art"

7/7/2021

 
I am a textile artist, an embroiderer.

My passion for textiles has been lifelong. I am grateful to have had people in my life that instilled in me their love of handmade and homemade goods. My Mum and Nana both sewed, knitted, crocheted, darned and mended. Sewing clothes and home furnishings, often out of necessity, was a way of life. The tactile nature of sewing and working with fabric felt natural to me.

In high school I sewed my own clothes, repurposed old/vintage clothes, made kids clothes and soft toys for craft shows. As much as I would have loved to pursue a fine arts degree, I completed a degree in Chemistry. I joined the Canadian Conservation Institute as an analytical chemist.

I particularly enjoyed following the work in the textile lab. I was especially fascinated by the variety of textiles that came into the lab, from household textiles to magnificent historic costumes and ancient textile relics.

I continued to sew, embroider, paint and sketch. Inspired by a family friend, I finally discovered that the stitch, sewing was my medium. I chose to use a needle, hand stitching as well as free motion machine embroidery as my tool, just as a painter would choose a paint brush. I love to sew.

I have practiced and continue to explore new ways to stitch. There are so many ways to create using thread.

I no longer evaluate myself in terms of other artists using more traditional media. I let my chosen medium and my experience take me on my own journey.

‘It’s almost like art’ is something I have heard numerous times from visitors at art shows. My motivation and inspiration is the same of most artists. I observe the power of the natural landscape. I endeavour to create work that honours those observations.

I use stitch to challenge the viewer with the old perceptions that the textile arts are just as valid as any traditional media.

Embroidery is an excellent medium to interpret the beauty of nature. I aim to create landscapes, rich in colour and texture to evoke emotion and capture a moment in time.

Now when a visitor, perhaps unfamiliar with textile art says ‘it’s almost like art’, I say ‘it’s exactly like art’ and enjoy the opportunity to have a conversation.

Judi Miller
@jmillertextileartist on Instagram
@judimillerartist on Facebook
www.judimiller.ca
Picture
Judi & Chris in textile conservation lab
View this artist's gallery page.

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  • Home
    • Project Description
    • Meet the Artists
  • Challenges
    • Challenge 1-7 >
      • Challenge One - Floral
      • Challenge Two - Forest Floor
      • Challenge Three - Through the Gate
      • Challenge Four - Laundry Day
      • Challenge Five - Close Quarters
      • Challenge Six - vessel
      • Challenge Seven - Vessels
    • Challenges 8-14 >
      • Challenge Eight - Leavings
      • Challenge Nine - La Foce - Pergola
      • Challenge Ten - Spanish Guitar
      • Challenge Eleven - Timeline
      • Challenge Twelve - Joy
      • Challenge Thirteen - Finding Tranquility
      • Challenge Fourteen - Field View at Sunset
    • Challenges 15-21 >
      • Challenge 15 - Winter
      • Challenge 16 - Water
  • Collaborations
    • Collaboration One - Joy
    • Collaboration Two - Brick wall
    • Island Collaboration
  • News/Media/Blog
    • Blog
    • Newsletter sign up
    • Past Newsletters
  • Exhibits
    • Leslie Grove Gallery
    • Toronto Outdoor Art Fair - exclusively online
    • Arbor Gallery
    • Le Chenail Centre Culturel
  • Contact
  • WIP