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Wappingers Falls fiber artist Renee Pasquale says "pure joy" influences her creative expression evident in select pieces being displayed until Nov. 30 at the East Fishkill Community Library.
At the core of her art are cotton fabrics. Many of her quilts are placed on a canvas backdrop which are painted with acrylics to create a three-dimensional perspective.
She uses synthetic fibers, and likes how they respond to natural textiles, the artist told Daily Voice in a recent interview.
Crystals, metallic fibers and decorative thread embellishments add glow to her artwork, like a candle does when lit in a dark room.
Her second career as an artist full time began three years ago when she retired after decades of working as a medical/geriatric social worker in the Bronx.
Knowing that may lead visitors to the exhibit to think the work somehow reflects sadness or difficulties that afflict the human spirit.
Not so, says Pasquale. In fact, her creative journey, aims to inspire happiness. It's that simple.
"As an artist, I work from a happy perspective, not a dark place. It's fully legitimate for an artist to work from a dark place but that's not what I do, " she said.
Her creative spark began making landscape quilts and led Pasquale to become interested in the tactile and visual aspects of fiber and textiles, she said.
As a social worker, she helped move clients towards a happier and healthier life. Similarly, her art would take this glass half full approach and strive to bring people to a "happier place," she maintained.
Nature also plays a vital role in Pasquale's work, she said, noting how she recognizes the need for conservation and respect for the natural world around us.
She belongs to Arts-Mid-Hudson and Quilt Alliance.org, among professional groups.
Pasquale has a bachelor's degree in behavioral science, with a specialization in gerontology, and a master's degree in social work from New York University.
She is a fall 2013 graduate of Women’s Enterprise Developmental Center at Marist College.
Pasquale takes commissions for her art and is available to lecture on art to organizations and groups and at healing venues.
She has exhibited at Art for Healing exhibits and had pieces published by F& W Media in Incite: The Best of Mixed Media.
For more information, click here to visit her website.
The East Fishkill Community Central Library is at 348 NY-376 Hopewell Junction, N.Y.
For information and hours, call the library at (845)-221-9943.
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