COMPASSION This is the third in our series of Conversing with the Earth. As mentioned in my previous blog entries, I am reflecting upon...

Where It Begins Again- 20 x 32in - 2025 Through layering, stitching, and construction, I explore the strength required to rebuild after change, loss, or challenge. My work speaks of resilience and transformation, and of the continuous process of finding meaning in the threads of our lives. I was inspired by the archetype of the Weaver, which appears in stories like "Skeleton Woman" in Pinkola Estés´ Women Who Run with the Wolves, a metaphor for healing and rebuilding one´s ow

The third volume of Femina once again addresses the frustrations inherent in the female experience. I could have called it "Mission: Impossible," given how difficult it is to navigate the various roles society imposes on us. Today, there is finally talk of the "mental load." But back then—when I first arrived in France—the country was experiencing a period of growth. The French state offered women a wide range of benefits. At that time, women were expected to have three child

This is the final quilt in my series for Femina that charts the life stories of the women in my family from the 1920s to the 1970s. 20 in the 1970s I was a baby boomer, born in 1954 and, by that time, my mother had developed great aspirations for both me and my sister, realising too late for herself, how important a good education was. She drilled this into both of us that meant, for my sister and me, our twenties were spent at university achieving the degrees that, as she sa

As I mentioned a few months ago, I will deal with the female body, more specifically legs. My first Femina quilt showed the chubby legs of a baby, a period when women don't at all consider what their body looks like, and even less of what the society considers beautiful. They just exist: ignorantly amassing fat. Femina 2 presenting the legs of a young adult woman confirmed to the society's expectation to work out, to exercise, to have a nice shape of your legs. The third quil

Challenge #14 Unite for Hope Femina - latin for woman is a very broad topic that we will be focusing on for the next three challenges. I have decided to focus on how women throughout history have used textiles and fibre arts to communicate messages, in times of confinement, slavery and resistance. Documentation throughout history has shown the use of textiles and fibres arts have been used as a method of recording the current events and sending messages to others. In my thir

Femina 3, continuing with the tree metaphor, my third piece is called "Canopy". The canopy, a collection of leaves (women) from many trees (generations) existing to provide protection and support. The upper leafy layer is formed by crowns of individual trees Materials: hand dyed fabric Techniques: Machine applique, machine quilted, hand stitched Size: 20 inches by 32 inches

Earth Strong The native woman has wisdom from her connection to nature and strength from being grounded in her life My three Femina women exemplify the breadth of what women can achieve, from the native woman supporting her family to one at the epitome of scientific accomplishment to a women who rises from oppression to excel in the world of popular culture . We salute all three

Fós I mbun na hOibre ( Still Doing the Work) 20" x 32" 2026 This piece honours persistence. Despite inequality, fatigue, and systemic disregard, women continue — caring, organising, resisting, creating. The phrase acknowledges exhaustion without surrender. It speaks to generational continuity: women before us, women now, women yet to come. The act of stitching becomes both metaphor and evidence — slow, repetitive, determined work — reflecting the quiet endurance and ongoing a

by Mary Kay Fosnacht Overland Park, KS, USA piecefularts.com 20" w x 32" h (51 x 81 cm) This piece was inspired by communities of religious sisters whose lives of service, justice, and care for our common home continue to amaze me. The figures represent these women who accompany the vulnerable, care for the earth, advocate for justice, nurture their communities and persist despite obstacles. As in the first 2 pieces in this series, I have used flowers and thorns to portray

Frida Kahlo For the 20 Perspectives Femina series I found my inspiration in the artistic renderings of iconic females of other eras. This time I was drawn to a self-portrait by the celebrated Mexican artist Freida Kahlo. Among other things she is known for her many self-portraits, and I found one of them in New York City’s Museum of the Modern Art. In this small painting, “Fulang Chang and I” she has a neutral expression as she looks directly the viewer. She is holding he

Femina 3 Summer 2026 I loved exploring ways that I have defined myself as a female. I have been influenced since forever of what feminity looks like. And I have enjoyed finding statements from women that have also influenced me. How do I define feminine? Jewels! Yes, men wear jewelry, but in today society women truly use jewelry as a both a fashion statement and also a sign for status. Nothing says success better than diamonds. Homage to one of my favorite movies-Gentlemen

Madame Curie "Madame Curie". The first woman to win the Nobel prize. The first person to win it twice. And the only person to win it in two separate fields ( physics and chemistry). Femina!

My body is my trunk, supporting and protecting. It is an anchor that also provides nutrients. The second piece in my femina series portrays tree trunks as females while also containing the roots from the first piece. Materials used are hand dyed fabric and dyed silk rods. Techniques include raw edge applique and machine quilting. size 20 inches by 32 inches

Woman with a Pearl Earring For this piece, the second of our 20 Perspectives ‘Femina’, or Feminine, series, I again decided to look for inspiration in the artistic renderings of iconic females of other eras. I landed on ‘Girl with a Pearl Earring’ painted by Johannes Vermeer in 1665. Vermeer is widely considered to be the greatest painter during the 17 th century Dutch Golden Age. Scholars believe this painting is an idealized girl’s face rather than a portrait, although

For my second piece in the series Femina series I decided to finally tackle a long-held wish to interpret one of Ana Mendieta’s drawings. I have been fascinated by her art for many years, and her uprootedness from Cuba, her ways of expressing and exploring her feminine experience made her a natural inspiration. Screenshot of https://www.lempertz.com/de/kataloge/kuenstlerverzeichnis/detail/mendieta-ana.html , taken on March 4, 2026 I traced one of her linear goddesses and alte

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Working in 3D is not my forte, and I was very close to opting out of this challenge after searching for an idea for a long time. But one...

My mother was born in 1921 in a small village in the Potteries and so her 20s were inevitably shaped by the impact of World War 2. Having left school aged 14, she began work as an office clerk and met my father in a cycling club in 1936. Four years later the war started and they quickly got married before my father left to join the army. For a short time, my mother became a land girl and then, tiring of farm work, she went to London. Here, she worked in the drafting depart

Challenge # 13 The Message is in the Quilt Femina - latin for woman is a very broad topic that we will be focusing on for the next three challenges. I have decided to focus on how women throughout history have used textiles and fibre arts to communicate messages, in times of confinement, slavery and resistance. Documentation throughout history has shown the use of textiles and fibres arts have been used as a method of recording the current events and sending messages to oth