Artist: Rosemary Hoffenberg
of Wrentham, Massachusetts, USA.
Interview 109
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Interviews published by Gareth Bate & Dawne Rudman.
Biography
Rosemary Hoffenberg resides in Wrentham, Massachusetts, USA. She is a nationally recognized contemporary art quilter. Rosemary was first introduced to batik and after many years began to leave off the wax and continued to dye fabric for quilters. Slowly the idea of quilt making took hold of her and she has been quilting ever since.
Rosemary's contemporary art quilts have been featured in numerous prominent shows, including twice in Quilt National, where her art quilt, Broad Strokes appeared on the inside front cover of Quilt National 2001, The Best Contemporary Quilts. Her work has also been featured at The Museum of American Folk Art, New York, NY; the New England Quilt Museum, Lowell, Massachusetts; The Federal Reserve Bank of Boston Gallery, Boston, Massachusetts, the Whistler House Museum of Art, Lowell, Massachusetts and other well known exhibitions.
Her quilts have appeared in several publications including Quilt National, Transformations, Art Quilts, the Magazine of American Folk Art and the following books – Dyes & Paints by Elin Noble and The Fabric Stamping Handbook by Jean Ray Laury and others. Rosemary has participated in workshops with Nancy Crow, Michael James, Lenore Davis and has taken textile classes at the Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI, USA. Rosemary's website.
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Artist: Rosemary Hoffenberg. |
Tell us about your work?
My work is primarily two fold: First, I create the "surface design" on white fabric. Then, I develop a composition in the form of a quilt. This is done through a variety of processes: dyeing, screen-printing, batik, mono printing and painting.
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Roman Aqueducts, 48" x 49", Quilt. Cotton, dyed, screen-printed, painted, mono printed, machine pieced, machine quilted. Photo: Joe Ofria |
From where do you get your inspiration?
I cannot say that I get my inspiration from any one "thing." I do however, love nature, it's patterns, colours and forms. I am an observer. This comes through in my work. I choose my fabric and I develop my composition out of an intuitive source.
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Circumspect, 34" 32", Quilt. Cotton, dyed, screen-printed by Lonni Rossi; machine pieced, hand and machine quilted. Photo: David Caras |
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Time Out, 38" x 41", Quilt. Cotton, dyed, screen-printed, machine pieced, hand and machine quilted. Photo: David Caras |
Why did you choose to go into fibre art and how did you decide on this medium?
I have to say that it chose me. I have always loved textiles. I was introduced to Batik through a friend, and I did it with a passion. After many years, I left off the wax and continued to dye the fabric for quilters. Slowly, this idea of quilt making took hold of me and once again I was "hooked."
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Eggstra Ordinary, 51" x 50", Quilt. Cotton, dyed, shibori, clamp dyed, screen-printed, machine pieced, hand and machine quilted. Photo: Joe Ofria |
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Downtown, 42" x 57", Quilt. Cotton, cotton canvas, clamp dyed, stamped dyed, painted, machine pieced, hand and machine quilted. Photo: David Caras |
What specific historic artists have influenced your work?
Pablo Picasso for his ability to abstract everyday forms. Josef Albers for his play with colour. Howard Hodgkin for his abstract representation of shape and colour. And, Dale Chihuly for his ethereal use of line. I also have a strong affinity to the works of Arthur Dove and Marsden Hartley.
World of Threads Suggests the Book: |
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Forest For The Trees, 31" x 46", Quilt. Cotton, dyed, shibori, discharge, batik, clamp dyed, screen-printed, stamped, machine pieced, hand and machine quilted. Photo: Joe Ofria |
What specific contemporary artists have influenced your work?
The most influential artist in my career has been Nancy Crow. I was still a dyer when someone showed me her book, Improvisational Quilts, by C&T Publications. It caught my attention as the dyed fabrics were similar to my own, and I was inspired to learn to sew. Michael James has been pivotal in my work. The sensitivity to the formal aspects of art that he brings to the quilt has had a strong impact on my work.
World of Threads Suggests the Book: |
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For Ray, 36" x 35", Quilt. Cotton, cotton canvas, clamp dyed, shibori, air brushed, screen-printed, machine pieced, hand and machine quilted. Photo: David Caras |
What other fibre artists are you interested in?
I also like Sean Scully for the way he orders his field and colour. Other fibre artists whose work I appreciate are Jette Clover, Elin Noble and Jan Myers-Newbury.
World of Threads Suggests the Book: |
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Garden Gate, 49" x 55", Quilt. Cotton, dyed, screen printed, batik, marbling, machine pieced, machine quilted. Photo: Joe Ofria |
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Kelp Forest, 46" 43", Quilt. Cotton, dyed, screen printed, some commercial fabric. Photo: Joe Ofria |
What is the most interesting thing to you about the world of fibre art?
The most interesting thing in the world of fibre art to me is its versatility in the use of a very specific medium.
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Golden Gate Bridge, 58" x 57", Quilt. Cotton, shibori, clamp dyed, machine pieced, machine quilted. Photo: Joe Ofria |
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Chrysanthemum, 57" x 42", Quilt. Cotton, resist dyed, machine pieced, hand and machine quilted. Photo: Joe Ofria |
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Haystack Phosphorescence, 46" x 57", Quilt. Cotton, dyed, painted, stamped, shibori, resist dyed, machine pieced, hand and machine quilted. Photo: Joe Ofria |
When you were a child, did you want to become an artist?
As a child, I was always drawing or painting, but was not encouraged to become an artist. I did not allow myself to be called an artist until later in life. Even when I was well on my way, I used to say, "I am becoming an artist." Now, it just rolls off my tongue.
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Fish Tales, 52" x 47", Quilt. Cotton, dyed, marbling, shibori, screen-printed, machine pieced, machine quilted. Photo: Joe Ofria |
Is there someone who has made a difference/impact on your work?
Yes. Nancy Crow! I appreciate the discipline she brings to the quilt as an art form. This is also true of Michael James.
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Mt. Desert Isle, 38" x 58", Quilt. Cotton, shibori, marbling, dyed, screen-printed, machine pieced, hand and machine quilted. Photo: Joe Ofria |
If a good friend were to describe your style, what would they say?
I hope they would say that my work is forever growing and surprising.
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Ancient Text, 43" x 45", Quilt. Cotton, dyed, screen-printed, machine quilted. Photo: Joe Ofria |
How have your expectations changed over the years?
My expectations have not changed. I continue to have a strong desire for excellence and growth. I want each successive quilt to be better than the last, and if it is not, to learn from it.
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Simile But No Metaphor, 42" x 43", Quilt. Cotton, shibori, machine pieced, hand and machine quilted. Photo: David Caras |
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Winter Woods, 33" x 40", Quilt. Cotton, mono printed, dyed, shibori, machine pieced, hand and machine quilted. Photo: Joe Ofria |
What project has given you the most satisfaction and why?
I gained a great deal of satisfaction from working in one motif and working it into a series. It gives me parameters and boundaries. Having said that, I also love hanging up a body of newly designed fabric and waiting for it to speak to me.
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Summer in Seville, 57" x 60", Quilt. Cotton, dyed, painted, reverse appliqué, machine pieced, machine quilted. Photo: David Caras |
Tell us about your studio and how you work:
I actually have "two" studios - - one "wet" and one "dry" studio. In the wet studio, I do all of my dying, painting, screen printing, etc. In other words, "surface design." I am completely immersed when I work this way. It is always new and surprising. When I am in my quilting (dry) studio, it is a whole other frame of mind. The textiles are the raw medium, and I have to create a work of art.
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Studio Photo: Allan Hoffenberg |
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Studio Photo: Allan Hoffenberg |
What interests you about the World of Threads festival?
I am most interested in fibre that is cohesive and beautiful. I like to look at art that has order and purpose.
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Ancient Echoes, 21" x 28", Quilt. Cotton, silk, dyed, screen-printed, machine pieced, reverse appliqué, machine quilted. Photo: David Caras |
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