Artist Profile: Rachel Parris

Rachel Parris
Birmingham, Alabama

1,  What year did you make your first quilt?  Traditional or art?  I made my first quilt in 2006. It was an art quilt

2.  What is the first show, and year, that you ever entered your art quilts?  Venue?  My first entry consisted of my journal quilts at IQF in 2006. Houston at the International Quilt Festival

3.  What is your artistic style? Pictorial, personal, and story based.

4.  Have you ever changed your style from when you started making quilts?  See number one. LOL  No, I don't think so.

5.  What other style in quilt making piques your interest? I am fascinated by crazy quilts and might have a go at that someday. I especially like the ones that have a digital image in the middle.

6.  What other medium in art influences your work as a fiber artist? Photography, block printing.

7.  What do you have coming up?  This exhibit, An Exquisite Moment  Otherwise, I want to just work at my own pace for a while and see where it takes me.

8.  Where will your art take you from here? Who knows? I hope it takes me to new friends. I hope it continues to lead me to confidence in myself. I hope it leads to a deeper appreciation of the beauty that is all around us.

9.  Describe your studio space: My studio space is divided. I have a guest bedroom upstairs that serves as my "work/design" space. I use folding tables from Costco set up on risers, and I mostly work standing up. Supplies and fabric are stored in the closet in plastic bins or folded on the shelf. My "design wall" is a piece of insulation board that I can wiggle in between the toilet and the tub in that bathroom. My sewing machine is in the dining room downstairs.  Oh, my computer, which I use a lot is in the master bedroom. For me, quilting is a very active sport.

10. What was the biggest challenge you have encountered in the making of your art quilt for "An Exquisite Moment?" My BIGGEST challenge, aside from coming up with an idea,  was my decision to work with felt as my batting and backing on a piece this large. My machine only has a 6" harp and I struggled.