News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Helen Brisson’s fabric painting looks like a sketchbook page.
Sisters put on its prettiest face on Sunday afternoon, as strollers took advantage of perfect summer weather to visit some 25 sites around town that hosted fiber artists in the Sisters Fiber Arts Stroll - the traditional kick-off to Quilt Show Week in town.
The fiber art stroll is a free, self-guided walk featuring artist demonstrations and special exhibits of textile-related arts and quilting. Artists demonstrated their craft and answered questions from strollers, some of whom got a little hands-on experience with a variety of media ranging from weaving, felting, hand-knitting, fabric dyeing, basketry to quilting.
Quilt Show teacher Kathy Doughty of Sydney, Australia, was relaxing in the sun outside Sisters Coffee Company, where Janet Storton was selling fabric in support of her "Sisters of the Heart" project that nurtures a textile industry among the women of Kapchorwa, Uganda.
Doughty is the featured artist at Quilt Show Sunday at FivePine Lodge & Conference Center.
"This is my last moment of relaxation till next Monday (July 11)," she said as Jeff Omodt purchased a fistful of fabric from Storton.
It's no easy haul from Sydney, Australia, to Sisters, Oregon, but Doughty has made the trip four times. What keeps bringing her back?
"Sisters!" she said. "I love it here. There's not that many places you go in the world where the community bands together for something like this."
Across the street at Paulina Springs Books, Marieclaire Van Dam was demonstrating the creation of handmade bookmarks that patrons could take home with them.
Van Dam was born and raised in Amsterdam and had a 20-year career as a couture fashion model for Coco Chanel, Yves Saint Laurent and others. At the age of 80 - and despite losing the vision in her left eye - she is still going strong, creating handmade books, miniature art, calligraphy and more.
Helen Brisson was tucked into a comfortably shaded spot on the back deck behind The Paper Place, where she demonstrated her watercolor fabric painting.
"I basically take the color out of the fabric and put another back in," she explained.
A graphic artist by trade, Brisson's work tends to reflect her skill in drawing. In fact, one painted quilt is cleverly designed to look like a page in a sketchbook.
She learned painting on fabric through a class at Stitchin' Post, but she quickly decided to add water to the paints.
"It meant more work, but you have better control," she said.
The color of the paint going on is not necessarily what you'll end up with, she told a fascinated visitor. The color can vary depending on how the fabric was processed.
Ultimately, Brisson's work brings her the same kind of challenge and satisfaction that most watercolorists express about their medium.
Brisson also invited the public to head over to The Open Door during the quilt show, where she has a quilt that looks like a car door.
"I'm really proud of how my chrome came out," she said.
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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