Myself When Young...

I was blessed with creative genes and when I was a little girl (yes that really is a photograph of me, age 6 or so) I did not have a lot of store bought toys.  I often made puppets out of my dad's old socks.  I hand-sewed clothes for my sister's Barbie doll as well as my own "faux" Barbie (a Made in Japan knock-off).  I was handy with an iron (I actually loved to iron--still do!) and my mom taught me how to use her Singer sewing machine to make a pillowcase or patch a handkerchief.  When I entered high school I could not get enough of clothing class in my junior and senior years.  I even tailored a suit!  I made a lot of my dresses.  I wanted to become a fashion designer.  Alas, circumstances forced me to work right after high school and that dream never became a reality.  BUT with the encouragement of the man I would eventually marry, when I was in my mid-twenties I enrolled at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago and although I did not land in the fashion department, I did make a wonderful friend who one day encouraged me to use my sewing machine (which had not been used in years) and he said "Why don't you make a doll of Ted?" (Ted is my husband).  The rest is history.  I have been a member of The Illinois Artisans Program for 25 years, juried in as a cloth doll artist, and yes that is a sketch I made of one of my cloth dolls.

To have a peek at some of my creations go here:

www.flickr.com/photos/angienaron/sets/72157603826452727/

The background of my collage is "Colored Alphabet" by Jasper Johns.  I chose it because it reminded me of a lot of childhood things...primary colors, ABC's, building blocks.  It also looks like a fabric patchwork quilt.