We reached out to Heather to learn more about her creative process and artistic journey. She shared that a few years ago, she had a pivotal moment when she decided to focus on creating joyful, uplifting art. "So much art has a dark undertone, and that's completely fine and needed, but it just wasn't the type of thing I wanted to focus on anymore," she explained, reflecting on what led her to embrace embroidered art.
When asked if she had always been drawn to fiber arts or if she explored other artistic mediums first, Heather shared that she began her creative journey with painting and drawing at the age of 15. "My Grandmother taught me embroidery long before that, but I didn't do much with it until I was in Grad school for painting. I was going through a really hard time and just couldn't paint for some reason. So I started doing some embroidery again, and ended up doing my entire thesis exhibition in cross stitch.
Since graduation, I was determined to find ways to combine both painting and fiber art. I've always been very experimental when it comes to art media."
The creative process can come with its own set of challenges, and for Heather, sometimes the work feels monotonous and tedious. "But I used to work in assembly line-type factories, so I think that somewhat prepared me for this. It can actually be meditative to do repetitive work. The challenge is to just get yourself into a zone of being very focused."
The finished result is Heather's favorite part. "I'm never quite sure how each piece will be received by the viewers. But I really enjoyed interacting with people who like my art. So many people have connected it to happy memories from their past and it's an honor to hear their stories."
