Using fabric as her canvas and thread as her paint, Jay Moore challenges herself to create realistic portraits that capture the essence of the individual such as Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg seen above. Scroll down for more of Jay's work...
As a woman of faith and prayer, Woodridge, IL artist Jay Moore strives to portray messages from God in her art and reflect the individual character of every one of God's unique creations.
“Prayer and a relationship with God are so important,” she shares. And though Jay's personal life has seen many challenges, she says that prayer and her faith helped her navigate through them all.
Her art journey started during childhood when she learned to sew, design her own clothes and even draft patterns.
With a long-time passion for sewing and the fiber arts, it’s no surprise that today she works with all types of thread and fabrics to create portraits, abstracts, and more. Her work is detailed and textural blending a myriad of threads to achieve just the right color combinations.
Regarding her desire to create portraits of famous people, she writes in her Artist Statement: “The purpose of a portrait is to memorialize an image of someone for the future…They have been used to show the power, importance, virtue, beauty, wealth, taste or other qualities of the subject.”
Jay recalls her youthful fascination as a young child with the Picasso statue at the Richard J. Daley Civic Plaza in Chicago. She credits her many visits to it for spurring her interest in abstract design.
“Every time my mom and I went downtown, I’d beg her to take me to see that statue so I could gaze at it from every possible angle,” she shares.
For her, a good abstract design is where everyone sees something different in it because it ignites their imagination.
“I like to challenge myself to use my sewing skills to make as realistic a picture as I can or to match the image I can see so clearly in my head,” Jay says.
It wasn’t until about the year 2000 she started sharing her thread art with others. She said that at first, she was afraid of criticism because her art is “her baby” and she didn’t know if it would be well-received. However, she has since learned that often what other people say can be helpful.
Fast forward a decade later and she’s been featured in a variety of solo shows including in the art galleries of Wheaton and Downers Grove libraries.
She works in sizes 7” x 9” and 16” x 20” with a price range of $250 to $800. She accepts commissions.
Learn more here and below as a featured artist with the LaGrange, IL Art League: https://digitalmama.net/
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Prince in thread by Jay Moore.
JUNETEENTH in thread by Jay Moore.
President John F. Kennedy in thread art by Jay Moore.
By Jay Moore
Abstract by Jay Moore
The artist, JAY MOORE