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Artist Statement My drawings have appeared in many forms throughout my life, but it was love of the handcrafted object that inspired me to combine drawings with quilts. Each fabric I use has a unique personality, and the pattern on pattern brings humor and spontaneity to the stories. The raw scissor-cut edges have a spontaneous energy that remind me of the hand-drawn line. Quilting with thread creates texture and structure and at the same time, communicates symbolic images and motifs. Quilting is a meditative process, and I think of the quilted line as a thread of thought wandering over the surface of the entire quilt ...images of grass, wind, water, noses and kneecaps guide my hands and needle as I sew. I work large so I have room to add jokes and stories within the story, and sometimes I find myself laughing out loud, even when working alone in my studio. I’ve always believed that humor and creativity are linked -- they both seem related to the ability to step outside of ourselves and look at things from a different or surprising viewpoint. In many of my quilts there is a woman I call PaMdora -- she views the world around her with a strange mixture of astonishment, dismay, and amusement. My everyday life is the seed for these quilts, a weird combination of worrying about important things like alien invasions or small things like being late for a date. Although these stories are embellished for entertainment and to fantastic ends, elements of each of these stories are real to me, and I find, to many people. I enjoy sharing these connections. It’s a way to bring us a little closer together, and if I also happen to make you smile or laugh, that’s even better.
Artist's Biography Pam RuBert was born in St. Louis, Missouri, but her life and art has been largely influenced by her Japanese heritage. After graduating with a degree in English Communications and minor in art, she met her future husband Russ RuBert while taking a sculpture class. They were married on a cliff overlooking TableRock Lake in the Ozarks, and after exchanging wedding vows, plunged together into the lake and into a life of art. Together they renovated an old 22,0000 square foot peanut butter factory to create an art studio. In the center of this “art factory” is Pam’s studio where she creates art quilts using fabric, thread, sewing machines, and vintage buttons. When not making art at their studio, Russ and Pam are often traveling to look at art and visit other artists. You can read about their art adventures on Pam’s art blog, PaMdora's Box. Pam started making art quilts in 2004 and since then her work has been featured in national and international exhibits such as Quilt National and Art Quilts at the Sedgwick, in a 2006 PBS nationally televised documentary, and has won awards in the Husqvarna Viking Exhibition and International Quilt Festival. In 2009 her quilts will be featured in a museum exhibition in Holland and in books that will be published by Voyageur Press and North Light Books.
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all images and content © Pam RuBert
