What is your first memory?

 Growing up in Southern Germany, I can remember my grandmother sitting on a wooden platform (to get distance from the cold floor), embroidering and fringing the traditional local shawls that were worn to church by the surrounding farmer’s wives.  I also remember my mother, being a dressmaker, behind a Singer sewing machine, trying to eek out a living after the war.

Who got you started in the fiber arts and what technique did you learn?

During the early years in elementary school, girls were required to take home economics classes every Wednesday afternoon learning to knit, crochet, sew, etc., while the boys played outside.  Given that background, it’s fair to say that I was surrounded by fiber activities all my life.

What drew you to the techniques you have now mastered?

 With my background, I knitted and crocheted anything . . . from scarves to dresses, pants, coats, etc.; for almost 30 years.  One day, I just stopped, and never touched a knitting needle again.  A few years later, a workshop in basket weaving was offered locally and I signed up.  It was because I always had a fondness for baskets.  It never occurred to me before that I could weave one myself.  It was instant passion.

What does fiber art mean to you?

 What fascinates me most is the immense variety of materials, shapes, colors and patterns that can be used to create a wide range of works.

Where do you want your fiber art to go in the future?

 I like creating “pictures or scenes” with a variety of textures.  It gives me a sense of using fibers as a “paintbrush”.  There seem to be no limits.  I want to expand my experiments. I enjoy collaborating with other artists and am now exploring working with fine art painters.