I get a distinctly calm feeling when I look at these incredible works by fiber artist Heather Collins. By using a variety of textiles and embroidery techniques she pieces together sculptures that recreate the natural world in unbelievable detail. She describes her unique process in a terrific interview by TextileArtists.org.
I use free machine embroidery, mainly straight stitch or zigzag, taking a few threads at a time. I intensely machine them together incorporating snippets of wool and fabric to create a new piece of cloth. I’m not too precious about my work, often cutting it up and reworking it, using a heat gun or soldering iron to distress the work to achieve the desired effect, and embellishing with hand stitch as required.
2 thoughts on “The Embroidered Sculptures of Heather Collins”
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I am just venturing into fiber sculpture and trying to get ideas. I have been invited to take part in an exhibition which may be put on by IQC Africa. I am coming to this later in life dand finding it quite difficult to start, so these articles on textile art are very interesting. I am in Durban, South Africa.
Thank you