A little news

I met artist Hamlett Dobbins last year. Not only is he a talented artist but he is also the wizard behind the website called Memphis Material, an oral history project collecting interviews from Memphis’ visual arts community. When he contacted me about being part of the archive I was hesitant. It meant being interviewed about my life and how I came to be an artist. It always makes me nervous to be interviewed. Will I remember dates? names? will I say uh 400 times? But Hamlett’s easy, welcoming, curious manner made the uncomfortable, comfortable. I appreciate what he is doing and love listening to all of the stories of the incredible artists here in Memphis. I invite you to explore the many points of view the visual arts community in Memphis present.

Today marks the finish of my piece called Burst. While it was a work in progress I called it 02.28.26, a reference to the war in Iran. It measures 41” x 36” with a forward protrusion of about 10”. It bursts from the wall.

Burst, a 3D fiber art sculpture with explosive features made by Paula Kovarik

Inspirations

I am a collector of images and ideas.

Artists

The list is long, longer each day I discover someone else making incredible work. I linger on all of them. Here are six from a list of thousands.

Nature

I have to be in nature to be healthy. Sometimes I stand in shock and awe because of the beauty and mystery. I might have to buy more photo storage for the thousands of photos I have of these miracles.

Books

I read all and everything—Science, Mystery, SciFi, History, Maps, Essays, you name it I want to read it. These six are from my list of thousands that stuck with me after reading.

Cracks

I walk every day the weather allows it. Cracks in the sidewalks, cracks in the streets, cracks on walls speak the language of transformation. Here are six, some don’t show up unless it rains.

Things on roofs

A lot of my art is about communication, how it happens and when it doesn’t. These images remind me of how many ways we reach to the sky to capture the stories floating by.

Where do you get your ideas and images?

Send me an email

On clutter

I am privileged to have a large studio in which to create my art. I have been in this space for about 15 years. Recently I realized that I am burying myself in my work. I have to shuffle things around to find workspace, storage space and display space. It is heaven.

I like going to museums, craft stores, estate sales, second hand stores and libraries. They fuel my ideas.

Accessory store in Memphis Tennessee, JunLee

My friend Juanita brought a group of us to this store in Memphis. It holds every which way of fashion materials from Church Lady hats to walls of earrings and stickers. Need a sequined bustier? A tie dyed pair of leggings? A beaded purse in the shape of a football? We got you covered.

I also love puzzles. I give myself permission to do one puzzle each year. I know my tendency to obsess. If I didn’t limit myself to one you would find me buried under a card table filled with sky pieces, water pieces, and that little piece that has a stripe of pink with a yellow tongue that I have been looking for for a long time. I finished this puzzle last week and lo and behold a friend of mine sent me another one as a challenge. It is a drawing in black and white and gray of the anti-war painting by Picasso called Guernica. I changed my mind and will allow two puzzles this year. I remember being awestruck and losing my breath when I saw the original in Madrid.

I am hyper focused these days. While walking I will actually get down on my knees to see a mushroom emerge. My wishlist includes an electron microscope. Sounds emerge where there were none before. And don’t get me started on those little beetles that show up if you dig. The bounty of inspirations fuels me, astounds me and if I am honest it can stop me in my tracks.

Fiber art sculpture with oval mouth

Here’s my latest work. I haven’t figured out what to name it yet.

Food for thought

Free shotgun if you buy a diamond.

Here’s something we saw while driving through Arkansas. A jewelry shop is offering a free shotgun if you buy a diamond. It reminded me of a store here in Memphis that used to have a sign that said “Nuts and Furs”

Tennessee in March

Two years ago I had the wonderful opportunity to teach at Shakerag Workshops in Sewanee, TN. This place is a dream in reality. The Cumberland Plateau, the food, the folks — It’s one of my favorite places. The class, At Play in the Garden of Stitch, was a blast. We stitched with abandon, ridding ourselves of inhibitions and self doubt. The room was filled with laughter. We learned that there are no mistakes, just new ways of looking.

At Play in the Garden of Stitch - March 6-9, 2026

Do you love to be with creative folks? Do you want to feel more comfortable with free-motion quilting? Are you an artist who wants to experiment with cloth and thread? This workshop brings all of that together.

On March 6-9 I will be leading a weekend workshop at St. Mary’s Sewanee Retreat Center located on the edge of the Cumberland Plateau (a little more an hour from Nashville or Chattanooga, TN). It’s a quiet lovely space that brings contemplation and peace to those who travel there.

I’m dreaming of the Spring in Sewanee. I’d love to see you there.

Sign up now, the class should fill up soon.

Entranced by triangles

It’s no secret that I am awash with scraps and scraps and scraps of formerly known quilted objects. I sometimes wonder if this is simply an obsession or a valid experimental process for making art.

scrap curtain

I love the quote by the painter, Amy Sillman:

“I finally realized, over the last thirty years, that what I was interested in was the transformation of something into something else. And then to something else.”

Last year I cut up a number of quilted objects into triangles and created a push/pull composition that looked like this:

Push and pull with a lightning streak down the middle.

Using previously created work brings a wealth of story and depth to the substrate. I remember working on each and every one of those triangles in their former lifetimes. While I am always inspired by the stitching and colors of the originals I still overstitch the triangular modules to establish a denser texture.

This composition seems forced and flat. So it went in the use-it-again pile in my studio.

Stage 2 (or is that stage 3?

Picking up where I stopped I played with shaping the material into a new form. The layering of the fabrics and overstitching gave the raw material a weight and ballast that helped in that effort. I could fold it, mold it, roll it and stand it up. I ended up with this helmet shaped standing object. It was fun to walk around the studio wearing it for awhile.

Push and pull repurposed into a sculptural helmet

It was a challenging departure from the flat piece and I learned a little about ballast and balance when standing a quilt up. But, bottom line, I wasn’t happy with it. So I cut up the triangles for a new piece.

Then I had a lot of triangles

Triangles are a common unit in quilt construction and also very versatile for sculpture. Put four together and you get a pyramid. Three make very handy spiky shapes that combine well into a six-sided hive shape.

The underside of the constructed object.

These triangles are getting rawer and rawer from all the manipulations I have tried. I soon realized that I had to do some hand stitching to get the pieces together if I wanted them to hold their shape.

That took a while. It’s not my favorite thing to do but there is a sense of accomplishment in doing it.

Caterpillar, close up

A spiky caterpillar, still in process.

I’m loving this shape and the versatility of triangular construction. I think I will repurpose a piece that is standing in my office to make a bigger version of this caterpillar shape. Invisible, the work shown below, was constructed with repurposed triangular pieces. She stands in my studio. It might be time to transform her into a new shape.

We all do that from time to time right?

Invisible (foreground figure) shown at the Dairy Barn in 2019.

If I build it will you come?

I have been looking into a way to offer a stitching workshop here in Memphis. I want it to be all about process and experimentation. I’m thinking a 5-day or 3-day intensive. The Shapeshifter Art School in Memphis is offering a wonderful classroom with an attached art gallery for the workshop. There are lots of details I need to consider before committing to it. Here’s my question: Would you consider a trip to the beautiful, bluesy, artful city of Memphis to spend time with me, the mighty Mississippi and your sewing machine?

I'm interested