The Cutting (& Stitching) Edge - Amy Fredman

Amy Fredman is a textile artist from Kansas City, US.

“I practice a form of thread painting using a non-computerized home sewing machine. My intention is to approach the use of stitch placement from the perspective of a painter. With the careful distribution of sewn color gradients and layers, I am able to express depth and what appears to be color “mixing” as well as achieving texture through directional changes and stitch strokes. I emphasize that I do not use a computerized sewing machine because my goal is to create something a computer, or programmable machine, is not capable of.”

I love to see sewing machines being freed for work like this. Over on Gear Threads we’ve featured plenty of machine embroidered art, but I decided to keep Amy for myself. Her portraiture isn’t a million miles away from Cayce Zavaglia, however the technique behind it has great merit.

Amy makes this work look effortless, as though it was a simple process to build the layers of colour and depth. I really enjoy her choice of content as well, as the fresh approach is a great tool for removing those all-to-familiar intellectual barriers.

It’s great stuff and I’m grateful to Amy for reaching out and sharing her work. Find out more about Amy at her website.

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The Cutting (& Stitching) Edge is brought to you in association with PUSH: Stitchery, the contemporary embroidered art book curated by Jamie Chalmers. Featuring 30 textile-based artists from around the world, it’s a must have for needlework fans.