Layers of Meaning

Lura Schwarz Smith : : Pre-Raphaelite quilting

With exquisite faces and figures that echo the Pre-Raphaelite movement, Lura Schwarz Smith has created a series of art quilts that meld painting and quilting so completely that to is difficult to separate the two. She describes the evolution of this process: "In college as an art major at San Francisco State University with an emphasis in painting and drawing, I became interested in the possibilities of fabric as an art medium, and for my final project in senior painting class I produced my first art fabric wall piece. It was somewhat three-dimensional, minimally quilted, used felt weight pellon for a batting, and was pictorial in content. I thought of it as painting with fabric, using mainly applique and soft sculptural techniques."

Save Our Quilts gives an interview with Smith. In this, she cites her influence from Jean Ray Laury and her Imagery on Fabric book. Smith creates original drawings (she's also a book illustrator) and then photocopies them to fabric and paints them using Versatex fabric paint. Smith also emphasizes the necessity to take classes and learn a variety of sewing/quilting techniques: "I could always use more technique. It’s stuff in your tool box and it’s always good to add to that. I feel that certainly I am still learning, learning, learning all the time. Every piece I do is a great learning experience. Lately I’m having a lot of fun with this free-form curved machine piecing. I fractured these spaces and built the texture freely. I had a lot of fun with that. I like to just cut fabrics and slap them together without templates and patterns. I developed that technique on my own. It’s very fast and direct. But especially in the beginning, taking classes was very important. I started with my guild taking local classes and learning so much. I like to work as quickly and directly as I can, so I love a lot of those techniques."