Fabric Fever, Good Fortune and True Love
- vejay25
- Jul 12, 2022
- 10 min read
Updated: Jul 12, 2022
The first time I met my husband, Al, I had been dreaming about creating fabric-wrapped basketry for a while. And the first time he gave me a ride home from work (we worked at the same bank in downtown Chicago), we drove past a fabric shop that I'd always pass when I took the bus home, and I remember casually saying to him, “One day I want you to take me in there so I can look at fabric”. He just smiled at me and said, “Okay”. Little did I know at that time, that he would be the one who would believe in every dream that flowed through my mind...My “Ride-or-Die” Partner. It turned out that not only did he give me rides home from work, but he also drove me to any fabric store that I wanted to visit, and he'd patiently walk the aisles with me while I picked the fabric that I wanted...and he paid for it. His love and patience led to our getting married and building a home in Chicago on South Beverly Boulevard, where my creativity could bloom into dreams that came true.
When I first started to create fabric-wrapped coiled basketry, I struggled with design ideas. Having no formal art training, and no idea how I should approach the process...I just dove in! I didn't have any real direction of where I would go with the work, but I knew I was driven to do it...I felt it! I knew that I had to follow the Call of Creativity to see where I would be led. I created my very first piece, 'First Born', using fabric from old clothes – a brightly colored blazer and blouse my sister had given me...It was my Initiation! At the time (early 90's), I was working full time at First Chicago Bank, and I didn't have a whole lot of free time for creativity, so I would take the project to work with me and work on it during my lunch hour and on my breaks. Then, when I'd get home (usually late – after 6pm), I'd try to squeeze in a little time for it after monitoring homework and getting our children (my daughter and Al's daughter and son) to bed, but that usually wasn't much because I was on an “early to bed, early to rise” schedule. So, believe it or not, I worked on 'First Born' for almost 6 months before I could actually say it was finished. If you look closely at the details of 'First Born', you'll see the reason why it took so long. The base required the most time. I used thin thread and yarn to wrap the thinnest paper raffia that I could find, and I don't know what possessed me to take that route for creating a base, but I guess it's a testimony to the fact that I was a total rookie to the process. Then came the process of connecting the first rung of the coil to the base...and learning how to stitch. I had no idea how I would proceed. But I didn't let that stop me – I kept at it until it “told” me it was finished. 'First Born' is a treasure! I still have it, and I believe it belongs in a museum...but while I'm holding on to it, it's my reminder of my creative beginnings.
In those early days, I had very little money to spend on creative projects after taking care of all of the household needs that required most of the budget. So, I had to work with whatever was left over, which was never very much...sometimes as little as $5.00. Imagine going into a fabric shop (I usually shopped at Michael's because it offered affordable variety) and seeing so much beautiful fabric, but only being able to afford 1 yard of it - I did that a lot! But I kept going back, as many times as I could, collecting as many pieces of beautiful fabric as possible. I started making small pieces, with my process being to just follow the fabric design to see where it would lead. Most of my early pieces were 3 or 4 coiled rungs in height and usually round forms, because I was too “chicken” to venture into any other shape. But one day, I was “smacked” in the head by an oval shape! And then I started to see the beauty of shape, not just fabric design and color. I kept pressing forward, studying traditional basketry and pottery forms, teaching myself and learning from trial and error, and trusting my own imagination. The pieces started to grow in height and width and take on exciting new shapes! Self-confidence was my new partner, and the hunger to see what was next was always my “Driver”. One day I went down into our basement and looked up at the 4-tiered shelf that we had down there...and every shelf was filled with vessels! I had become so consumed by the process of creation that I didn't even realize that I was in the training phase of the process. It felt so good to be “driven” by the beauty of fabric design and the flow of shape. It never felt like work, and I was driven to work at it every day...by Passion! I started to document and track my procedures and mistakes and solutions to problems. I took lots of photographs of all of the stages of my work, and my husband sometimes filmed me working on pieces. It was like leaving “breadcrumbs” on the path to my own progress, and a way to always be able to share my experience with others who might want to learn from my trials and errors...I was actually developing content for my first self-published book, 'Something from Practically Nothing', which was copyrighted in 1997 and sold to the public for the very first time at Borders Books on 95th Street on Chicago's south side.
Getting back to that 4-tiered shelf in my basement that was filled to the very top with finished creations - the question of what to do with them started floating around in my mind. I don't remember when I started imagining myself as an Artist, but that title just started hovering over my world and hanging around in my mind. Looking at many of the pieces that I'd finished, I started believing that my work was good enough to be entered in local shows and festivals. The first major festival I applied to enter was Chicago's Du Sable Museum's 25th Annual Promenade Exhibit, held in Jackson Park, in the summer of 1995. I was a “newbie” at exhibiting, and hadn't gotten my feet wet, so to speak. I didn't make one dime for all of my effort and excitement. As a matter of fact, I took a loss because I had to pay an entry fee. I didn't like that feeling of taking a loss on a show, but it was a lesson learned, and I didn't let that feeling stop me from pushing forward towards getting my work exposed in the public arts arena. Later in 1995, I entered the Kwanzaa Celebration held at the South Shore Cultural Center in Chicago. That was the event that really boosted my confidence in my work! I was excited from the moment I approached the grounds of the Cultural Center, and that excitement propelled me right on through the show. I even met and got a photograph with noted television/radio journalist Tony Brown, who was on his way to an event as a headliner at the festival. I even went home with some money in my pocket from the multiple sales I made at the 2-day show...I was on Cloud Nine!
After my somewhat shaky initiation into the arts arena, I became more focused and determined in my approach to the work, going forward. I decided to purchase an Artist Market book to research local galleries and festivals and brush up on gallery protocol and prerequisites. In that book, I found Vale Craft Gallery in Chicago's River North Gallery District. What caught my attention was Peter Vale's comment about one of his exhibiting artists and her work. The artwork he'd chosen to represent his gallery in the '96/'97 Artist Market was a quilt an artist had made, which depicted the impact of epilepsy on her life and the life of her child. It depicted a body, caught up inside of an endless spiral...Chaos, expertly depicted on a quilt! His comment embodied so much compassion and empathy, I knew that his gallery was where I wanted my work to be exhibited because he cared about the artist, as well as the artwork. How did I accomplish that, you might ask? Well, over the course of a few months, I made several visits to the gallery, but could never work up enough nerve to go in and introduce myself to Peter. So, my husband would drive me to the gallery, and I'd get out of the car while he and our children would circle the block (because the River North Gallery District is always busy and there was hardly ever a free parking meter or space) until I had my fill of looking into the windows of the gallery. He'd cruise past me and ask, “Are you done yet?!?” And I'd answer, “NO! Go around again!”. Was I a Stalker? I guess I was a stalker, in the BEST sense of the word...because in that time when I peered through the windows of Vale Craft Gallery, I soaked up inspiration and creativity, with an embedded vision of my work in that beautiful space...My dreams were being fueled!
On the 3rd anniversary of our marriage in 1997, my husband and I went to dinner at Joe's Crab House, which was in the same neighborhood as Vale Craft Gallery. We arrived in River North early that evening so that we could go gallery hopping and view some art before going to dinner. That was the day I worked up enough nerve to go into the gallery and introduce myself to Peter Vale! And it's a day I'll never forget! When I walked into the gallery, I was immediately impressed by the collection of talent and creativity on display. And Peter was so courteous and kind in his welcome to me and my husband, Al. When I signed the visitor's registry, I told him how many months I'd spent peeping through the gallery's windows and how long it had taken me to work up my nerve to just walk into his gallery, to which he replied, “Well, I hope I'm not that intimidating!” I told him he was, and to just look around...Smithsonian artist, Tina Fung Holder (well known for her intricate safety pin artwork) and master quilter, Jane Sassaman, were among the exhibitors in his gallery. YES! I was intimidated, because I had no formal art education (not even a college degree), no art portfolio and no real knowledge of gallery protocol. All I had was a shelf in my basement that was full to the ceiling with works that I felt were beautiful enough to be sold in a gallery...I had FAITH! SO! Imagine my shock and surprise when Peter Vale asked me what kind of artwork I created. I told him I created fabric-wrapped, hand-coiled and stitched basketry, and he said he'd never seen that. When he asked me if I had any slides that I could send him, I gleefully replied, “Sure!” I was in shock all the way home and couldn't wait to get my slides to him. What I didn't know was that there was a proper way to submit slides for review (arranged in a slide sleeve and accompanied by a description/dimensions), and an improper way (slides rubber banded together and put in an envelope with the letter). You already know the way I sent them, right? Yep! But luckily for me, when Peter opened the envelope, he liked what he saw on the slides that tumble out. Now, imagine how surprised and even more shocked I was when Peter called me and asked if I had any pieces that I could bring down for him to see? I was almost dumb struck! But I pulled it together, went down to that shelf in the basement and picked 4 pieces that I hoped would impress him. I only took 4 pieces because I knew how congested the River North Gallery District was, and that I might have to walk a little distance to the gallery, carrying the pieces. And I also thought to myself that he might not like any of the pieces, and I might very well end up having to carry all of those pieces back to my car. So, I was trying to play it safe. I was absolutely floored when he said he wanted to take ALL of the pieces (He actually placed a couple of them in the front window of the gallery!) and asked me if I had more! That was the beginning of my formal relationship with Vale Craft Gallery in Chicago's River North Gallery District - Chicago's largest gallery district. I skipped all the way back to my car, SMILING!
Another wonderful experience that occurred at Vale Craft Gallery was meeting Peter's mother, Mrs. Virginia Vale, who was an amazing jewelry artist and also exhibited at the gallery. Virginia became my friend from the very first day we were introduced. I told her how intimidated I felt by the caliber of great artists that they represented, and that I was a self-taught artist who had no formal art education. Her response to my truth was to encourage me to not be afraid to step into the “Big Ring” of the arts arena, and to trust that my own artistic offerings could stand right alongside other great works. If she wasn't at the gallery when I visited, Peter would always give me warm greetings that he said came directly from her. And when I participated in the first 'Art Attack Weekend' exhibit in Harbor Country Michigan (Union Pier), where I set up an exhibit at a local resort business (Greenwood by The Lake) that was owned by my dear friends, Luther and Judith Stanton, Virginia and Peter were among the first visitors to my exhibit. They spent a good portion of the day with me and shared lunch with me, assuring me that I was on the right track in my pursuit of establishing a “presence” in the arts arena. Virginia Vale left a positive imprint on that track for me to follow. And while I am not presently submitting work for exhibit at the gallery, my relationship with Peter Vale and Vale Craft Gallery is on-going, and I am still given the honor of having my name appear on the Exhibiting Artists roster on the gallery's website...And who knows, a special piece of my work might show up at the gallery one day in the future - because I still have Fabric Fever, the good fortune of having a loving husband who continues to push and support me, and wonderful friends like Peter Vale.
It's so interesting to read this post, Ma, and stroll down memory lane having been present through your creative journey in real time. Loved how you shared your process and all the pics along the way, as well! -Nyeema