[Art] Interview with Alisa Golden

[KELP JOURNAL] Alisa your quilts are lovely. So lovely, can you talk about how you got into this art form? Was it learned from a relative (that’s how I learned quilting) or did you pick it up on your own?

[ALISA GOLDEN] Thank you! When I was a kid I was given a packet of fabric squares, which I sewed into a pillow after my mom taught me to sew, but she was not a quilt maker. Over the years I made quilts for our beds, but the quilts were not my art form. After my young son died I letterpress printed a poem on cloth, then stitched it together in layers and tore it (in our tradition we tear a piece of cloth when mourning someone), and that was probably my entry into making “art quilts.”

Over several years my art practice gradually shifted from making handmade books to making art quilts full time. This is a roundabout way of saying I am self-taught, but I will reference an instructional book or a YouTube video for a specific question like how to make and stitch a binding or inset a circle inside a square. But my printmaking background is still very present in the quilts with the letterpress printing and making handmade stencils, so I tend to think of my art quilts as really big open books.

[KJ] So, much about quilting is about community. The giving and receiving of quilts have a long tradition as well as the crafting of them in communities like quilting circles. I am curious if you have a community like that for your projects? 

[AG] I actually get too distracted working in a group. But I am a member of Studio Art Quilt Associates, and I recently gave them a mini quilt for one of their auctions, which I think I may continue to do. They are the most organized organization I have ever belonged to, and I really appreciate how they support their members through opportunities, advocacy, exhibitions, and catalogues.  https://www.saqa.com/

Founding my independent online and print magazine, Star 82 Review has been a wonderful way to connect with writers and artists, and that is a community I cherish. It’s now in its thirteenth year: I’m working on the fiftieth issue, an anthology of prose and art.

https://star82review.com/

[KJ] I can’t stop looking at these beautiful works of art. I was wondering what goes into your process of choosing fabrics for quilts. I personally purchase by feel. I run around the fabric store like a kid on a sugar high touching everything. But how do you do it, do you go by what you like, color, feel?

[AG] I’m a colorist, so color really catches my eye. That said, I buy yards of white Kona cotton, cotton velveteen, and black Kona cotton from Dharma Trading and really enjoy dyeing cloth or de-coloring it myself. A friend has a textile business, so I often get her cast off white and off-white linen fabrics as well. There is a Little Free Craft Library up the hill from my house where I have gotten yards of solid colors as well, and I love the Japanese fabrics that Kimonomomo sells on Etsy. She’s local to my area and sometimes has open shop days as well. That’s my candy shop, but I try not to go unless I need something specific for a project!

[KJ] I can’t even imagine what goes into creating a work like these, are you using a pattern? Creating your own? Do you sew them piece by piece before putting it all together in the larger work? On some it appears you’ve added special touches, like embellishments. How long does a quilt like this take to make?

[AG] I keep an art journal and sketch and draw in it, and sometimes one of the sketches shakes out an idea or design, which I feel compelled to follow. Other times I take out a bag of scraps and start ironing – ironing helps me think – laying out colors until I like the composition. Or there may be one particular material or color I want to work with, and I figure out the best use for it.

On the other hand, I may see or read about something (usually in nature: the quilts here are all ocean-related) and look for materials to help me express my response to it. That’s probably the most common way I work; starting with the subject. Regarding embellishments: I enjoy beading, but I will only add beads or iridescent sequins if the quilt “asks” for them.

As for how long: it’s hard to put a time frame on a quilt; it depends if I need to dye the fabric or if I have cloth I’ve previously dyed, or if I am working on more than one at a time, or if other responsibilities need my attention. Weeks or months, I guess.

[KJ] I noticed that there were several kinds of stitching. Can you talk about how those are rendered and what goes into picking one kind of stitch over another?

[AG] I think about the scale of the quilt: smaller quilts needs smaller patterns and thinner threads, for example. I think about the content and if there is a Japanese sashiko stitch that has a named patterned stitch that might relate to it (I guess that is my writer side talking); some of my favorites are “rising steam,” “fishing nets,” and “crossed birds.” I consider if and what texture the stitch will add to the final piece. I may just decide on a running stitch or a partial version of a sashiko stitch, or if I want a tighter pattern or texture I might use the sewing machine and free-motion stitching.

Technique-wise, I create paper patterns with Affinity Designer for the sashiko stitching that I print onto sticky-back paper, or I use low-tack masking tape as a guide so I don’t leave chalk marks on the quilt. I then stitch around the tape or stickers.

[KJ] I know that you are also a writer and I always like to ask my multi-faceted creators how they choose a form?

[AG] Whatever the project is I have a mantra: “Decide. Commit. Focus.” I enjoy writing, but writing means I have to take a deep dive and figure out how I am feeling (and sometimes I just don’t want to go there), whereas I can work more intuitively with art materials. A dream may start the process, I may hear a sentence in my head, or I may see a visual pattern that I want to explore. I like learning new ways of working, like a new embroidery stitch or the challenge of writing a haibun, so often it is just a question of: what do I want to learn to do next?

Alisa Golden reads a paper newspaper at breakfast, walks her inner dog daily, and edits Star 82 Review while watching birds by the San Francisco Bay. Her art and writing have been published in Triple #22 (Ravenna Press), Blink-Ink, One Sentence Poems, FRiGG, and others. www.neverbook.com | www.star82review.com