Julie Craig is a Fiber Artist that lives in the Blueridge mountains of Brevard N.C. trained in a diversity of art forms such as Silk Painting, Wool Felting, and Watercolor. Her works have been shown in Gallery’s from Brevard, NC, Atlanta Ga. and Orlando Fl. 

 

A key to my art... I love the way light shines through stained glass as if light is creating rainbows of color with an intensity of a fire. I have found the mediums that I can express the intensity of color that I crave. I believe God gave us the ability to see, to touch and visualize our emotions through color. There is vast color variations in all the nature all around us if we have eyes to see it! I work primarily with beautiful textiles of Silk & Wool and with every color under the sun available to create my unique pieces. They are hand dye or custom blended so each creation is a one of a kind piece of artwork.

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WoolFiber Art 

Wool Fiber is like painting with a needle using various wool fibers called “Fiber Painting” I use a method combining wet and needle felting to create a fibrous canvas in two and three-dimensional works of art.“I am basically using fiber like paint to create a picture,”  “The amazing thing about wool and fiber form is it really has a sculptural quality as well as being able to use it like paint.”

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My Fiber Art Paintings begin with a core wool base, Merino, Silk, Bamboo, and Angelina fibers are built up into a picture. The picture is then wet Felted to attach the fibers into one piece of fabric. The painting is then detailed with a barbed needle to give detail and definition to the picture. They are mounted on a stained gallery birch panel. Her wildlife-inspired work includes wool paintings of bears, foxes, owls, hummingbirds and landscapes that she meticulously creates using a needle for details with combinations of exotic fibers such as merino wool, cashmere, mohair, camel, silk, bamboo, and rose fiber. The unique method allows her to create a realistic quality in her art. Her lifelong love for nature is why she is drawn to creating animals and landscapes.
 

 

Silk Painting

My process begins with a luxurious base of precious pure white China silk stretched tightly on a frame. I use the combination of imported French Silk Dyes and French Silk Paint resist of Gutta (which is like a rubber cement) Rice Paste or Hot Wax Resist. The purpose of a resist is to stop the flow of dye and create a barrier, which makes the outline of an image.

 

I start with a sketch of an image when I begin a painting. I can plan but never totally control what each painting will evolve into. The temperature and humidity will effect the pigment and flow of the dyes. The excitement of silk painting comes from the subjective images and combinations that emerge within these boundaries. It is still amazing to me how this happens. The essence of what I am painting comes through the flowing dye creating a painting that is a unique one of a kind art work.

 

One of the things that excites me the most about silk painting is the purity and the intensity of color that can only be achieved by this unique technique. After the painting is complete I steam or dry heat the silk painting for many hours. This technique binds the dye to the silk fiber increasing the intensity of the color. It also makes the painting very permanent and durable. The silk pieces can be washed or dry cleaned.