paula chung, textile artist

An Article about the Gallery & My New Show!

2012-01-18T10:46:00.001-08:00

I just received a copy of Quilters Newsletter and saw a new article about my work and the gallery (The ArtQuilt Gallery-NYC). I'll be from January 23 through March 3 and Sue Benner is the next featured artist. Her work is wonderful. Hope you can check it out both of us!

Other Pieces to be Shown in New York

2012-01-13T16:07:00.000-08:00

Pink Rose I

Among the 11 pieces being shown is some work that many haven't seen for a long time. They're older pieces that I made in 2007. One piece, Pink Rose I won 3rd place in abstracts at IQA in Houston that year.

White Rose XI

That was my first time in Houston and I was so fortunate to meet up with Jamie Fingal (www.jamiefingaldesigns.com). I was all by myself & pretty much lost. She was kind enough to invite me to her dinner group and it was great fun! They embraced me as one of their own and I was so moved by that. I think quilters are that way.

When I was accepted to Quilt National '09, I went by myself again, and again quilters embraced me. I met some wonderful new friends. Among my first acquaintances that first night, was Marianne Burr (www.marianneburr.com). She does incredible silk dye painting & embroidery on whimsical pieces using geometric shapes.

Marianne

Another great friend that I met at QN is Cathy Jeffers. She does wonderful, whimiscal pieces! I'm having trouble loading the work she does, so please go to her site--it's a great new site:

cathyjeffers.com

Two New Works to be Shown

2012-01-11T11:00:00.000-08:00

I've been working for months on 2 new pieces for my New York show. I had done a commission piece of an apricot rose and enjoyed working with that palette, so I created 2 more apricot roses. I had had a lot of silks dyed for that project, but found I needed even more!

Dyeing fabric is like having Christmas everyday. I am always so excited to wash out the silks. Because I want to keep the lovely sheen of the silks, I use vinegar instead of soda ash in the dyeing process. I also gently wash out the dye by hand after processing which can be very tedious (especially if they're dark violets!) and line dry. But it's all worth it when I see the marvelous color! And often I overdye many times, to get more complex, deeper color.

Here are my 2 newest pieces:

My New Show in New York!

2012-01-11T10:34:00.001-08:00

I'm so excited to show two new pieces, along with nine others at a new gallery in New York City, The ArtQuilt Gallery-NYC. I'm thrilled to have been asked and hope you'll check out their website and if possible stop by the gallery, if you're in New York City.

http://www.artquiltgallerynyc.com/The_ArtQuilt_Gallery_NYC/The_Art_Quilt_Gallery_in_New_York.html

And I'm excited to spend some time in New York City seeing as many art museums as I can fit into 4 days. It's going to be a whirlwind trip. Hope the weather is still nice!

Art Quilt Tahoe

2011-11-14T12:41:00.000-08:00

Last week a friend, Loris Bogue, and I attended a workshop with Valerie Goodwin at Art Quilt Tahoe. Valerie is a professor of architecture at a university in Florida with a very busy schedule, so we were very fortunate that she was able to come to the west coast.

Art Quilt Tahoe takes place at a beautiful setting, Zephyr Point, not far from my home. Here's a shot of the alpine glow you can see after sunset.

Unfortunately it was quite cold at the beginning of the session, but as the week went on, it started to warm up.

We did many exercises in line and composition and then went onto begin our personal projects. The exercises were very helpful. I find in art classes, I learn more from the critiques, and it was certainly the case in Valerie's class.

Here's two of my designs:

Here's two of Loris' designs:

Most students chose a city map of various cities throughout the world. Some students chose to do almost imaginary maps which became very interesting, almost abstract. I chose to use topo and geological maps and an image of an area here in Tahoe--Mt. Tallac.

Here is the piece so far. The background (sky) are the types of rock formations in the area. I hope to do some surface design on it to integrate it more, then will stitch the topo lines and streams in different threads. The middle ground is an image of the mountain--I am using tiny pieces of fabric and will stitch it down with black or violet tule. The foreground are the trees and valley, which may be painted or printed and modified. I'm not sure yet.

It was a wonderful experience. I am looking forward to taking Valerie's 5 day workshop in composition. I learned so much in such a short amount of time. But what I think was the most valuable was the opportunity to slightly see the world through Valerie's eyes. It really opened areas for me to explore.

The Process of Stitching

2011-10-09T09:04:00.001-07:00

A friend shared an image of her smile with me. It was such a great image, I couldn't wait to stitch it.

I worked with the image in Photohop and determined the values. I blew up the image to be 24 x 48 and mapped out each value. Then I assigned colors to the values and traced them onto tracing paper.

I chose raw silk to stitch because it has a lot of body. I dyed it a deep blue/green because I wanted to have some of that color show through the stitching to influence the colors of thread I used. I knew this piece was going to be almost solid stitching, so planned to have a small border of the fabric showing when mounted to a stretched canvas.

I placed the tracing paper onto the silk and began stitching with the thread around each area to indicate the color to use to fill in that shape. Then I removed the tracing paper & filled in each area with thread.

Here's the finished stitching, which will be pillowcased and attached to a 1 1/2" deep stretched canvas with velcro.

Collaboration

2011-10-09T08:44:00.000-07:00

My friend and fiber artist, Karen Rips, and I are collaborating to create a body of work we hope to present soon for a show we're calling

A View Within: Conversations.

Here's two of our pieces. Karen abstracts the image and I stitch the image:

We're calling these pieces Premature Infant 1. Karen's piece is 36 x 48 and mine is 36 x 36. This image was taken from an x-ray of a baby in the neonatal ward.

I'm anxious to get back to working on these images, but need to finish the two new floral pieces I'm presenting at the NY show.

Nor Cal SAQA Critique Meeting

2011-10-04T08:56:00.001-07:00

Yesterday a group of SAQA members living in Northern California & Nevada had a critique session at the lovely home of Robin & Paul Cowley in the Oakland Hills. I was excited to visit their home again, after seeing it on the SAQA Studio Tour over a year ago. It is a fabulous place! This is a shot from their garden showing an incredible piece by Jun Kaneko:

Sandra Sider led a critique session in which many of us participated. It was very informative and valuable. I learned a great deal and we all benefited in hearing Sandra's & others' comments on our work. But I didn't get any shots of the critiquing--mainly because I was taking so many notes!

Before we had arrived at the Cowley's, some of the participants met Sandra Sider & Franki Kohler for lunch and visited a small gallery in Oakland where Franki is showing some of her work. Here is the info for the gallery:

Creative Framing & Gallery, 5015 Woodminster Lane, Oakland 94602.

We had a great time. It was a long day for me, but packed with great information and lots of fun.

Another Great Opportunity

2011-10-01T19:11:00.000-07:00

This is a preliminary view of one of the new works that will be featured in The ArtQuilt Gallery-NYC.

www.artquiltgallerynyc.com/The_ArtQuilt_Gallery_NYC/The_Art_Quilt_Gallery_in_New_York.html

I'm very excited to show in a new, wonderful venue featuring art quilt artists. The previous artists have been Daphne Taylor, Noriko Endo and Carol Taylor, so I'm in really good company!

Painting With Fiber: Florals

begins January 24th and runs through March 3. I hope to see you there for the opening reception, Monday, Jan. 23!

An Introduction

2011-10-01T18:54:00.001-07:00

I'd like to introduce you to my fabulous painting instructor, Phyllis Shafer (www.phyllisshafer.com). I've learned everything I know about art from Phyllis. She is a fine artist, an incredible teacher and friend.

She has her 3rd solo show at the Stremmel Gallery (www.stremmelgallery.com) in Reno, Nevada this month. What's so interesting about Phyllis' shows is the fact that her work is almost sold out before the gallery even opens for the reception!

Her show features paintings of the Great Basin, as well, as other Nevada locations. The opening reception is Oct. 20 at 6 p.m.

A Great Opportunity

2011-10-01T18:44:00.001-07:00

I've been given another great opportunity to show my work in the magazine Quilting Arts. I hope you will check it out.

New Website

2011-09-18T15:29:00.000-07:00

My very good friend & web mistress, Loris Bogue, http://www.lorisboguedesigns.com/

has redesigned my website & it will be up and running shortly. I'm really excited about the change! It's exactly as I had envisioned it.

Commissions

2011-09-18T08:51:00.000-07:00

A lot of time has gone by during my last entry.

During that time I completed a large commission piece for a wonderful lady in Delaware for her office. It was an interesting endeavor. We worked together to get the colors just right for with the light, painted surfaces and carpet. Not being able to visit the site, I simulated the proper light temperature and chose colors from my Dyeing Bible using her paint chips. Dyeing and over dyeing was required with many different formulas.

Here's some formula work with my Dyeing Bible and paint chips:

Then the fun began. I dyed over 20 yards of different silks: tussah, raw, twill, china, duponi. She commissioned a 7' x 5' apricot rose, so it took some time and a lot of fabric. It was great fun. And it was fun to get back to flowers after time off stitching the body embroideries.

Here's the final product that is happily hanging in her reception area:

The Space Between

2011-05-17T07:56:00.000-07:00

I was given the opportunity to submit an entry for an exhibit entitled "The Space Between". My piece is related to my new found interest in x-rays, MRIs and other body imaging. I'm calling this piece, "Intervals".

You can also check out my interview being posted 5/20 at http://dinnerateightartists.blogspot.com/

Last of Exhibited Works

2011-05-16T09:24:00.000-07:00

This image is the last of the exhibited works at the Foyer Gallery, Lake Tahoe Community College. The exhibit will continue through June 18th.

This piece was taken from an MRI. Values were determined then stitched onto hand-dyed silk, densely quilted with monofilament thread. The quilted and embroidered piece was then cut down and attached to a textile painted strip of linen/hemp canvas that was also heavily stitched.

Premature Babies

2011-05-01T08:12:00.000-07:00

My friend and collaborator, Karen Rips (http://fiberartmusings.blogspot.com) loaned me some x-rays of premature babies. I was so struck by their tiny forms, struggling to get going in life.

I wanted to show these forms in stitchery and were the first embroideries where I used value to determine color.

And here they are individually:

Tesi's Pain

2011-04-27T07:26:00.000-07:00

This piece is another of the pieces in my solo show, "A View Within: The Body Stitched". It is a from dental imaging machine.

This piece is quite large--45 x 48 and is solid embroidery on dyed raw silk.

You can see the metal bar that was placed in her neck. Tesi's neck injury has caused her a great deal of pain and requires her to make many adjustments in her life as a metal sculptor and vibrant woman.

More Stitchings

2011-04-24T07:33:00.000-07:00

Here is the series I did on my friend's broken leg, showing 5 views of the break. It's entitled, "Femur: Five Views".

And these are the pieces individually. The pieces are embroidered by machine on hand dyed silk and attached to stretched canvases.

More Images From My Show, "A View Within: The Body Stitched"

2011-04-23T08:33:00.000-07:00

Here are a few more images from the show that is in the Foyer Gallery at Lake Tahoe Community College. The show will run through June 18th.

This is a series of sonograms chronicling growth at 12 weeks, 24 weeks and 36 weeks:

This is the series as shot from the gallery:

Last Night's Reception for "A View Within: The Body Stitched"

2011-04-22T09:40:00.000-07:00

My reception was a nice, cozy gathering of friends. It was great to see friends I hadn't seen in some time and to spend time with those that share art classes with me.

My work was well received and has inspired me to keep working in this discipline.

My fiber friends in SoCal sent this most amazing floral arrangement. It was wonderful to have their presence there through this gift, since they weren't able to attend.

And it sure added class!

Reception Tonight for "A View Within: The Body Stitched"

2011-04-21T08:50:00.000-07:00

My first solo show debuts tonight. There have been positive comments on the work, so I'm excited. My husband, Norm, is photographing for me, so I'll post some images tomorrow.

I snuck in the other night and took some photos, so here's one of a group of pieces I'm calling "Femur: Five Views". It records my friend's broken leg and the difficulties she has had since that accident--having to have it reset with more titanium pins.

Here's the image of that group:

My First Solo Show!

2011-04-12T13:48:00.000-07:00

I am so excited about my first solo show ever. It's been a long time coming and a real learning curve for me.

I wanted to present new work using a different process. I had been experimenting with embroidery and decided to create work using that process rather than my applique process. A friend had shown me some medical images and I thought they were so powerful, I wanted to embroider X-rays and MRIs.

It took a long time to figure out how to translate these forms of imagery into values that I could stitch and a lot of trial and error--mostly error. But I finally figured out how to do it with only 3 months left to make the pieces.

So I frantically stitched my heart away for 3 months.

This the close up of my first piece:

And this is the full image, which was chosen for the postcard:

I've photographed the other pieces and will be sharing them with you. I'll also photograph the installation, so you can see how the pieces look as a group.

Wonderful Opportunity

2011-03-17T09:35:00.000-07:00

I am very fortunate to have been chosen to be the featured artist in the latest Quilting Arts Magazine. It is a beautiful article showing many of my representational floral pieces and relays some information about my process and the road I've taken as a fiber artist.

And astoundingly, I was also chosen to be on the cover!

Artist as Quiltmaker XIV

2010-05-10T08:38:00.000-07:00

Firelands Association for the Visual Arts, of Oberlin, Ohio is presenting Artist as Quiltmaker, their 14th Biennial Exhibition of Contemporary Quilts this Sunday, May 16 with their reception going from 2 -4 pm.

I was honored to have been chosen by Carolyn Mazloomi, nationally recognized for her art quilts and numerous books and curated by Gayle Pritchard, an artist and author. The show runs from May 16th through July 31.

My entry, Wild Artichoke II:

Nevada Beach Pine

2010-04-12T10:27:00.000-07:00

I was asked to make a large silk piece for the Lake Tahoe Community College's new library. It is a beautiful space with a great deal of light and wonderful spaces to relax, read and contemplate.

I was asked to create something reflecting our beautiful scenery. I chose to as my subject a pine bough image inspired by the Jeffery Pine trees nearby my home at Nevada Beach.
I was fortunate to have wonderful help from the library director, Lisa Foley, the art department's chair, Phyllis Schaffer, the head of the 3-D lab, Francis Rider and a great maintenance crew.

This piece is hand-dyed and hand-painted silk, quilted with monofilament thread and backed with scenery canvas.

Since it was to hang 15 feet above ground level, we needed special equipment:

It was a great experience, creating such a large piece. It measures 10' x 6'. Luckily I had a design wall that was 10' long. It was a huge challenge to dye and quilt such a large piece.

ArtQuilt Elements

2010-03-31T17:31:00.000-07:00

I was fortunate enough to have been chosen as one of the artists showing in the Wayne, Pennsylvania art quilt show that coincides with the SAQA Symposium. The show runs from April 17th until May 19th.

But what's even cooler is my art quilt was chosen to be on the cover of their catalog!

Check it out: