Jodi Edwards-Wright

My art is realistic yet whimsical, full of blended shades of thread to capture the personalities of various animals in the glint of an eye or a faintly upturned mouth. Water soluble fabric is tightly secured in an embroidery hoop, then stitched freehand on a sewing machine. Interlocking circles of stitching in layers form the base of the art piece. On top, directional lines are sewn to develop texture. Final details (eyes, noses, whiskers, shine on the pupils, etc.) are added using hand embroidery through the thick layers. Once sewn, the art piece is submerged in warm water and the fabric gradually disintegrates, leaving the thread behind. The piece is then pinned to molds made of Styrofoam and tinfoil and left to dry and harden. As a primary teacher I became enamoured with illustrations in children’s literature. I found anthropomorphic animal drawings fascinating, because they somehow communicated human personalities while keeping identifiable creature traits intact. This inspires me to endow each animal face I create with hints of human emotion, while still maintaining a realistic depiction of that species. I think of my style as “storybook realism.”