Makers' Making: Judy Ranieri - Fibre Art - Apsley Autumn Studio Tour

New to the tour this year, Judy Ranieri and her fabulous textile and fibre works. With colours drawn from nature, Judy custom mixes her fabric and wool paints to use in the creation of each piece.

Get to know more about Judy with this Q and A:

Why do you do what you do?

I do it because I love it. It brings me happiness and joy to work with colour, texture and shapes.

What about this area inspires you?

I’m inspired by nature and I think my work reflects that. Whether I am painting fabric, needle felting a 2 dimensional sunset, or creating a wet felted piece that can be worn, I always begin with a vision that is a reflection of something related to what I see in nature.

What is your most memorable experience with art?

My most memorable experience with art goes way back to when I was in grade two. I was in love with a boy in my class. We were finger painting, and I drew a big heart with both of our initials inside. The teacher decided to hang it on the wall for parent/teacher night. I was soooo embarrassed! I begged my mother to call the teacher to have it taken down.

I’m proud to say that I’m no longer embarrassed to exhibit my work!

Please describe the qualities of one of the materials you work with.

I work with a variety of materials, but the one thing that I’ve been working a lot with lately is wool and other fibres such as silk and bamboo. I love how I can blend different colours of wool roving and then embellish them with silk and bamboo.

During the felting and fulling process, the wool transforms from individual hair like pieces of fibre into a shrunken solid mass (think of the last time you destroyed your favourite wool sweater by putting it in the washing machine). The silk and bamboo that is laid on top and subsequently ‘glued’ down with wool fibre, shrinks into a ‘squiggle’ and adds a beautiful sheen to the piece.

Give us a fun fact about you not directly related to your art.

I bought my first car (used) at the family cottage on a weekend. It was a standard shift, and I learned how to drive it on the way home to Toronto that weekend. Thank goodness the roads weren’t as busy as they are now:)