Jane Emery

Name:   Jane Emery
Website:  blog:  auntjanescreations.wordpress.com

What do you do?  
Fiber art.  I make folk art spirit dolls and animals from recycled decorator fabrics and trims.

Where can we find your work? 
I have them all over my house, waiting for art and craft fairs in the fall.

What inspires you to create and how do you keep motivated when things get tough?
 I was inspired by some spirit dolls I saw in an issue of “Art Doll Quarterly.”  Mine turned out quite differently, but I was hooked.  The other dolls and animals just evolved from that.  When I start having trouble with a piece, I just set it aside and work on something else for a while.

What do you think is more important content/finished product or technique/process? 
For me, the finished product is what’s most important.  

Who are some people who influence and/or inspire you? 
 I grew up in New Mexico and have always admired and been inspired by Mexican and American Indian culture and art.

If you could be any fictional character who would you be?  
Athena-the Greek goddess who is the protectress of civilized life, of artesian activities, and of agriculture.

When do you get your best ideas?  

Random times.  Sometimes when I am working on a piece, I feel like it is telling me what it wants me to do. 

What materials/tools do you use most to create your work?
 I use discarded decorator fabric and trim samples, all sorts of embellishments, stuffing, needle, thread, and occasionally a sewing machine.

Are you self taught or formally educated? How do you think that has influenced or affected your work? 
 I was taught to sew when I was young, but I have not had any formal art education.  I think being self taught might make a person less constrained and more open to their own ideas and techniques.

What would your creative work taste like? 
I think maybe pizza.

When you are not creating what do you like to do? 
I am a Raging Granny.  We participate in rallies and protests for justice, progressive and ethical causes.  We sing and do street theater.

How did you learn to access your creative talents and gain the confidence to put it out there for everyone to experience?
 I think creativity is something inside that drives a person.  I have always had that creative drive, but not the confidence.  When my friend, Debbie, saw my spirit dolls and birds, she encouraged me to sell them at craft fairs.  I got more confident when I realized that there were actually people who liked my work and were willing to buy it.

What advice would you give others just beginning their creative adventures? 
I would say, just plunge in and do it.  Do what pleases you.  It’s great when other people like your work but if they don’t, that’s ok too.