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THE
MAGIC
OF FABRIC
Art quilts by Leela Cherian
 |  Two Pots37” x 58” Hand dyed and commercial fabrics – silk, organza, lace, etc. Scrunched appliqué, sun printing, quilting, embroidery, beading |  Two Pots, Detail |
|---|---|---|
 Buzz in the Garden24" x 24" Silks and poly silks, velvets, laces, embellishments Layered appliqué, fusing, burning, beading |  Bird Gathering34" x 22" Dyed background Fused appliqué of birds, vines, flowers |  City by the River60" x 50" Hand dyed and commercial fabrics – cotton, silk, velvet, lace, organza, etc. Soft edge and fused appliqué, machine quilting |
 Caribbean Hues A20" x 20" Dyed cottons Pieced and appliquéd |  Caribbean Hues B20" x 20" Dyed cottons Pieced and appliquéd |  Embroiderer13" x 15" Sue Dove’s book "Painting with Stitches" has been a tremendous inspiration to me. I love her free embroidery technique and have done several pieces of my own design using her technique. This is done on canvas. The border is a hand embroidered band I bought at Dastakar. |
 And Then Some30" x 36" Printed fabric "quiltlets". I saw the work of artist Teesha Moore and this particular technique that she used for journals and bags. It is a perfect technique to showcase special fabrics and the hand work is soothing. I have done several hangings, bags and cushion covers, using the same method. These are hand embroidered, quilted and then heavily embellished with beads, buttons, charms, etc. "And Then Some"... because there is no end to all the embellishment possibilities. |  Blue Vase15" x 19" Hand dyed cottons, silks, poly silks, sheers, laces Layered and scrunched appliqué, hand embroidery, machine embroidery, beading |  Carnival Bird36" x 23" Hand dyed and commercial fabrics, crystals Soft edge appliqué, hand and machine quilting |
 Carnival Bird, Detail |  Debut Vase17" x 21" Cottons, organzas, silks Layering, sculpting, embroidery, beading |  Crucible16" x 16" Cottons, silks, organzas, laces Slashed, burnt, machine embroidered |
 Deer in the Clearing31" x 24" Hand dyed cottons Sun printing, trapunto, embroidery on water-soluble fabric, multi-layered, stuffed and embroidered rock textures |  Deer in the Clearing, Detail |  Drizzle in the Garden16" x 20" Dyed cottons Slivers of fabric covered with tulle and sewn down, layering, small dimensional flowers |
 Soft Matisse, Gallery12" x 12" each Hand dyed cottons and commercial prints Fused and raw edge appliqué, quilting |  Fabled City A56" x 46" Hand dyed and commercial fabrics – cotton, silk, lace, novelty fabrics Soft edge and fused appliqué, machine quilting |  Fabled City B56" x 46" Hand dyed and commercial fabrics – cotton, silk, lace, novelty fabrics Soft edge and fused appliqué, machine quilting |
The technique of scrunching up fabric and sewing it down to create flower compositions is one I have employed in several favourite pieces. Two Pots is featured in Lark Books’ 500 Art Quilts – An Inspiring Collection of Contemporary Work (2010). I was introduced to the very idea of “art quilts” in the 1990’s by British artist Lara Carter’s work. Lara used scrunched fabric for her stunning architectural images. I used that idea for several versions of my floral still life pieces. For me it is an opportunity again to showcase fabrics like chiffons and organzas, laces and yarns.
The “pebbles”, seen in the detail photo, are stuffed and embroidered, and the fern leaves are sun printed.
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