Kate Themel is an award-winning artist living in Cheshire, Connecticut. She owns and operates the Fiber Art Studio in Oxford, Connecticut.
Kate earned a Bachelor's Degree in Fine Art in 1992 and began using fabric as an artistic medium in 1996.
Kate has developed a distinct, painterly style in her compositions, which are constructed using basic quilting techniques and materials.
Kate Themel has created custom fiber art for individuals, hospitals and corporate clients and her unique fiber pieces have been exhibited in art galleries and museums from Boston to Botswana. Her quilted compositions have been juried into international exhibitions such as Art Quilt Elements, Kagoshima Quilt Show in Japan and Quilt National where Kate’s work earned the People’s Choice Award.
In the Artist's Own Words:
My Creative Process
"I rely on my formal training when I'm evaluating a composition and deciding if it works or not. The elements of art are the same whether you use ink, paint or fabric as the medium. I use fabric to explore value, color and shape. With machine stitching I can add lines and texture. Fiber art also has this sculptural aspect that's really exciting. I can explore a wide range of creative territory with textiles."
I'll share a bit of technical information on how I construct my designs. I usually start with a single layer of fabric as the foundation of the artwork. Then I use that to create a basic 3-layer quilt with batting and backing fabric, to add structure and stability.
Then I cut pieces of colored fabric (usually cotton, hand dyed and batiks) and arrange them on the surface of that basic background quilt. The first few pieces can be quite large - almost covering the entire surface. But as I refine the composition with more details, I cut pieces that are smaller and smaller - until they may be no bigger than a fingerprint.
I arrange the cut pieces in layers, overlapping edges or cutting out areas to reveal the color behind it, temporarily tacking them in place with a bit of water soluble glue. I use the fabric like dabs of paint, to create a sense of light and depth. When the fabric collage complete, I move everything to the sewing machine for more detailed stitching.
Machine stitching allows me to sew through many layers, securing all the little pieces of fabric and adding texture to the finished piece. I use free motion stitches to draw tiny details, blend colors, define edges and sometimes add new elements to the design. I use these stitched lines the same way I would use pencil, charcoal or pen/ink.
Resume
Selected Exhibitions
* Juried show
2022
- Viewpoints: Personal Viewpoints
- Horizons, Taiwan Art Quilt Society (Tainan, Taiwan)
- *LOCAL COLOR: A Connecticut Welcome
- Guilford Art Center (Guilford, CT)
- Greenwich Art Society (Greenwich, CT)
- Milford Art Center (Milford, CT)
- Windham Textile & History Museum (Willimantic, CT)
2021
- Viewpoints 9: Word Challenges
- Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum (Colorado)
2020
- Thread Count: A Fiber Arts Show
- Hartford Fine Art & Frames (Hartford, CT)
- *LOCAL COLOR: Rails, Roads & Rivers
- Windsor Art Center (Windsor, CT)
- Slater Memorial Museum (Norwich, CT)
- Viewpoints 9: Living Planet
- Horizons, Taiwan Art Quilt Society (Tainan, Taiwan)
2019
- Viewpoints 9: Living Planet
- Carrefour Europeen du Patchwork (Ste Marie aux Mines, France)
2018
- *SAQA: Wild Fabrications - Original Sewing and Quilt Expo
- Lakeland, FL
- Cleveland and Cincinnati, OH
- Arlington, TX
- Raleigh, NC
- Fredericksburg, VA
- Novi, MI
- Viewpoints 9: Word Challenges
- Horizons, Taiwan Art Quilt Society (Tainan, Taiwan)
- International Quilt Festival (Chicago, IL)
- * LOCAL COLOR: Inspired by Science
- Valentine H. Zahn Gallery (Ivoryton, CT)
- Windham Textile History Museum (Willimantic, CT)
- Windsor Art Center (Windsor, CT)
- *LOCAL COLOR: Connecticut Stories
- Gallery at 48 Natoma (Folsom, CA)
- *Fly Me to the Moon
- Stagecoach Theater (Ashburn, VA)
- Machine Quilt Expo (Manchester, NH)
- National Quilt Museum (Paducah, KY)
2017
- Take a Closer Look, solo exhibition
- Helen Bumpus Gallery (Duxbury, MA)
- Locally Inspired
- Windham Textile and History Museum (Willimantic, CT)
- Viewpoints 9: Constants and Variables
- International Quilt Festival (Houston, TX)
- Australian Quilt Conference (Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne Australia)
- *LOCAL COLOR: Connecticut Stories
- Slater Memorial Museum (Norwich, CT)
- *Fly Me to the Moon
- Quilting and Sewing Marketplace (Salt Lake City, UT)
- Road to California (Ontario, CA)
- Utah Quilting and Sewing Marketplace (Sandy, UT)
- Quilters Unlimited Quilt Show (Chantilly, VA)
- *SAQA Wild Fabrications
- Grace Hudson Museum (Ukiah, CA)
2016
- *Fly Me to the Moon
- International Quilt Festival (Houston, TX)
- *Local Color: Connecticut Stories
- Guilford Art Center (Guilford, CT)
- *SAQA: Wild Fabrications
- Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum (Wausau, WI)
- International Quilt Festival (Chicago, IL)
- Texas Quilt Museum (LaGrange, TX)
- George A. Spiva Center for the Arts (Joplin, MO)
- Museum of York County (Rock Hill, SC)
2015
- *Celebration of Fiber Art
- Art Center East (Vernon, CT)
- *SAQA: Wild Fabrications
- International Quilt Festival (Houston, TX)
- Viewpoints 9: Challenges
- International House (Davis, CA)
- Carrefour European Patchwork Meeting (Val d’Argent, France)
- Contemporary Fiber Art, Invitational
- Lore Degenstein Gallery (Selinsgrove, PA)
- *Annual Juried Members Exhibition
- New Britain Museum of American Art (New Britain, CT)
- Fibrations! Invitational
- The Great Hall Gallery (Springfield, VT)
- Solo Exhibition “Fabric and Thread”
- Funky Monkey Café Gallery (Cheshire, CT)
2014
- Let Me Quilt One More Day, Invitational
- New Britain Museum of American Art (New Britain, CT)
- Five Fiber Friends
- Fairhaven Furniture River Street Gallery (New Haven, CT)
- *70th Annual CT Artists Exhibition
- The Slater Memorial Museum (Norwich, CT)
- Inspiration Quilts: Then and Now, Invitational Exhibition
- Windham Textile and History Museum (Willimantic, CT)
- *SAQA CT: Local Color
- The Slater Memorial Museum (Norwich, CT)
- Guilford Art Center (Guilford, CT)
- Legislative Office Building (Hartford, CT)
- WCSU Library (Danbury, CT)
- Fiber Revolution: Fragmentations
- Straube Center (Pennington, NJ)
2013
- *Quilt National ’13 – The Dairy Barn Arts Center (Athens, OH)
- 2013 International Quilt Invitational Exhibition – Brigham City Museum (Brigham City, UT)
- Solo Exhibition of Fiber Art by Kate Themel – Saltbox Gallery (West Hartford, CT)
- Fiber Revolution: International Quilt Convention – Emperors Palace (Johannesburg, South Africa)
- The Artistry of Connecticut Craft – Brookfield Craft Center (Brookfield, CT)
- America the Beautiful – Texas Quilt Museum (La Grange, TX)
2012
- *Art Quilt Elements 2012 – Wayne Art Center (Wayne, PA)
- “Seasons” Invitational – Machine Quilting Unlimited Magazine, May 2012 Issue
- *Quilt National ’11 – San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles (San Jose, CA)
- *SAQA: Beyond Comfort – Martin Museum of Art at Baylor University (Waco, TX)
- Solo Exhibition, “New Light” – Funky Monkey Café & Gallery (Cheshire, CT)
Permanent Installations:
- Yale Pediatric Specialty Center (New Haven, CT) – Sea of Imagination
- Centerpoint Advisors Corporate Office (Newton, MA) - Boston Harbor
- Eli and Edythe Broad (formerly Kresge) Art Museum at Michigan State Univ. (East Lansing, MI) – Luka’s Eyes
- Sports Medicine Dept., Harvard/Children's Hospital (Boston, MA) - Runner
- Centerpoint Advisors Corporate Office (Newton, MA) - Boston Skyline
- Cheshire Historical Society textile collection (Cheshire, CT) - Anticipation of Discovery
- Afro American Cultural Center at Yale (New Haven, CT) - 40th Anniversary: Timeline
Honors:
- First Place – “CT Science Center”, Celebration of Fiber Art, Art Center East (Vernon, CT)
- Juror, SAQA: Northern California Inspirations – San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles (San Jose, CA) 2014
- Juror, Out of the Loop 2013 – West Hartford Art League Clubhouse Gallery (W. Hartford, CT)
- Honorable Mention – “Leaving a Mark”, 2014 CT Artists Exhibition, Slater Memorial Museum (Norwich, CT)
- Selected Artists Panel, SAQA-Sponsored Symposium at Quilt National ’13 (Athens, OH)
- Young Emerging Artist Award – Quilt National ’11 (Athens, OH)
- People’s Choice Award – “Dandelion”, Quilt National ’11 (Athens, OH)
Select Publications:
- "Fabric Art by Viewpoints 9" , Machine Quilting Unlimited magazine, Jan/Feb 2018, p.24, 26
- “Fly Me to the Moon”, Machine Quilting Unlimited magazine, March 2017, p.28
- “Let’s Talk Art Quilts with Kate Themel”, Australian Patchwork and Quilting magazine, Vol. 24 No. 10, p. 120-122
- Wolfrom, Joen: Color Play: Second Edition, C&T Publishing, 2014, p.10
- Art & Beyond magazine, May/June 2014, Back Cover and p.28
- Quilt National 2013: The Best of Contemporary Quilts, Dairy Barn Cultural Arts Center 2013, p.55
- Machine Quilting Unlimited magazine, July/August 2013, p.28
- “Figurative Quilt Art: A Conversation with Kate Themel”, Quilting Arts magazine, Apr/May 2013
- Sielman, Martha: Art Quilt Portfolio: People and Portraits, Lark Craft Books, 2013 p.55
- Themel, Kate: “What is it about Faces?”, Machine Quilting Unlimited magazine, May/June 2012 p.18-24
- Machine Quilting Unlimited magazine, Cover, Jan/Feb 2012
- Themel, Kate: “Painting with Fabric & Thread”, Machine Quilting Unlimited magazine, Jan/Feb 2012 p.40-44
- Fiber Art Now magazine, spring 2012
Professional Associations:
- Juried Artist Member, CWA (Connecticut Women Artists)
- Juried Artist Member, SAQA (Studio Art Quilt Associates)
