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Maggie Walker has been using fabric as a medium of expression ever since she got a chance to visit the American Craft museum in New York some years ago. At the time, she was representing several illustrators, including her husband, and doing freelance work as a graphic designer. As she walked by the museum on that working trip, Maggie spotted quilts from a contemporary quilt exhibit, and she was hooked. She began to collect fabric and make quilts. Joining quilt guilds and taking classes was the natural next step. As her fabric stash grew, Maggie began to to dabble in experimental quiltmaking. Small collage and pieced quilt; quilts were soon followed by quilted clothing in which she used her own collage applique technique: composed arrangements of several different fabrics with attention to a natural cascading rhythm. She added swirling ribbons and threads over and under the appliques, and the sewing machine became Maggie's drawing tool for thread painting, allowing her to visually weave the appliques into the background fabric. As her technique gained exposure, Maggie was asked to teach Art-to-Wear classes. Developing garment patterns was a natural result of her sewing and teaching. A desire to continue drawing lead to a line of applique quilt patterns that are treated as beautifully colored paintings in fabric. Maggie now hand dyes, paints and scribbles on her fabric, so quilts and fabrics are truly one-of-a-kind. She has her work juried into regional and national arts-and-crafts shows. Sometimes her garments and quilts are the only fiber-art pieces in a show -- coexisting with painting, sculpture, pottery, and jewelry. Some of Maggie's accomplishments include:
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