#33 dA Artists Interviews : ABrickman

Hi,
I'm Entwinedbliss, I've been allowed the honor of coming up with these questions for an interview. I am a self taught traditional abstract artist. I will be just as pleased to see the answers to these questions as anyone else will be. I hope that people get some interesting information from this interview of ABrickman. I really appreciate him/her taking their time to do this for us.


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#1. How old were you, when you
started creating traditional artisan
crafts?


It all started when I was about five
or six  years old. I don’t remember
exactly. My mother is a great crafter.
So, one day I asked her to teach me
something. Now, I’m sixteen, and I've
been learning  new things from her
since that very day!


 


#2. What inspired you
to start doing crafts?


When I was a little girl, my mother
worked in a craftshop. I spent hours
looking at different craft supplies and
at the people who had passion to
create something marvelous. I've
always been fascinated by all those
bright threads and shiny buttons.
Perhaps, that was the source of my
interest in crafts.


#3. What type of materials do you use?
Such as, clothes, clay, paints, plastics,
metals and ect.?


There’s nothing much I need for
stitching. I use colorful threads,
needles and special canvas to
work on to make the final result
look neater. We also use hoops
to fix an embroidery on it. There
are also many other kinds of
equipment, but I’m still learning
how to use it!





#4. Do you have a specific
place you do your crafts?


As a student, I hardly have any
spare time to sit somewhere and
do crafts. So, I try to make progress
everywhere! I even do cross stitch
during my school breaks and it looks
really weird. I usually work in my room.
It helps me to concentrate when I need
to solve an interesting mathematical
problem, for example.


#5. How long does it take
you to do a typical piece?


It all depends on the size. For example,
it took me seven months to finish my
biggest embroidery. I wish I had more
time to do crafts.


#6. Is there a specific type
of crafts you focus on?


I tried lots of things such as crochet,
knitting, beading, etc., but my favorite
one is embroidery. I just can’t describe
how excited I get when I see the final
result after weeks of work!


#7. When you start a piece,
what do  you focus on first?


I usually try to stitch something that
makes the whole picture alive, attracts
more attention. For example, if I start
working on a portrait, I’ll do eyes first
of all. My mother advised me to do it.
Perhaps it’s  just a habit, but I start to
enjoy stitching after I've done with it.





#8. What artists influenced you when
you started and what artists influence
you now?


As I told you, my passion to crafts
was influenced by my mother. Now,
my own source of inspiration is
deviantART. I joined this community
a couple of years ago and I’m still
completely blown away by the talent
of painters, writers and photographers!
I also found a lot of friends who support
me and fill my mind with some fresh ideas.
Speaking about embroidery, my main
inspiration comes from this
community -> stitchingpirates
Check it out to see some amazing works
made by the greatest stitchers ever!


#9. What are your aims as an artisan?
Do you want to become a professional
or do you just want to do it as a hobby?


As my school program is specialized
on Physics and Mathematics, I’d like
to connect my future life with
technology or science. It seems really
interesting to me! Although, I believe
I’ll never stop crafting, as it has become
an important part of my life.


#10. Are there any tutorials that you
would suggest someone to use from
dA? If not, are there tutorials from
somewhere else that you would
suggest?


Whoah… I've never browsed dA to
look for some craft tutorials! That’s
a great idea, I think. Personally, I
prefer to look in special craft Books
and magazines to find interesting
and useful  information. Don’t forget
about the Internet. It has everything
you need!  You just have to be curious
enough to search.


 


P.S. section
This section is dedicated to the artist being interviewed. It is to allow them to voice anything else about their art. That they feel wasn't covered in the questions above.


I’m only a student. So, I can hardly
give you any professional advice.
Though, I’d like to say that art is not
in exposure or many admirers.
It's in expressing yourself, your
thoughts and feelings. Yeah, I know
these words are a bit mainstream,
but it’s true - and we find the
example of it here, on dA! Though I
always say I’m not an artist, now I’d
like to admit that  everyone can be
an artistic person. Because, there’s
always a way for us to share our little
world with others.


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Once again, I just want to say, I really appreciate
ABrickman for taking the time to do this interview.
Thanks and take care,
Entwinedbliss