Abby Holmes is an artist, wife and mother and creates art influenced by these parts of her identity. As SJMQT's Spring Artist In Residence, she participated in the Artist Spotlight Interview Series. Read more about her work and see art created during her residency!
What has surprised you about your art practice since the Shelter in Place order?
With all the time to reflect that Shelter in Place afforded me, I realized that art is my true calling. I have created art since childhood. I was lucky to have a fabulous art teacher, Joe Bonifas, in middle and high school. I held jobs related to the field of art after finishing college until just before the pandemic. In the meantime, I had continuously created art, but it was not until the pandemic started that I decided to really make a go of it. Two quotes which I stumbled upon near the beginning of the Shelter in Place order greatly influence and guide my current artistic practice. Michelle Obama, in her autobiography Becoming, said there is power “in owning your unique story, in using your authentic voice.” The 13th century Persian poet Rumi said “Let the beauty you love be what you do”
What are the largest obstacles you need to overcome (immediately, near future, distant future)?
To make the art, or rather, to become disciplined enough to sit down each day and make art is my biggest obstacle to overcome immediately. Whether it’s one hour or eight hours per day, I am striving to set up a daily studio practice.
My biggest obstacle to overcome in the near future is to determine how to care for my son this summer and still manage to make art. I can’t take my son to my studio, so I will have to carve out some way to make time for my studio practice.
My biggest obstacle to overcome in the distant future is to either get an MFA or get over the fact that I don’t have one. Stop me if you have heard this one before: when I had the time and the energy, I didn’t have the money. Now I have the energy and money, but don’t have the time. I’m afraid when I have the time and money, I won’t have the energy. I just finished reading Old in Art School by Nell Painter. I did not envy the particularities of her journey which found her going back to school to obtain a BFA and MFA in her sixties. While the idea theoretically sounds appealing, I don’t think higher education is tailored for people who are older than their 20s or 30s. Hopefully things will change for the better. On the other hand, my mom informed me two years ago that my grandmother was 47 when she earned her Master’s degree in Education. Knowing this fact is all the inspiration I need.
What do you do when you get "stuck" in your creative process? Where do you turn for inspiration?
When I get stuck in my creative process, I usually give myself time: time to breathe, and time to step back and think. Or I take the time to take an art class to learn a new skill. Or I read about a woman artist who is new to me. If I get really stuck, I usually make a simple craft and voila, I remember how much joy creating gives me.
What are you currently reading/ listening to?
Before I bought the book Great Women Artists (edited by Phaidon) for myself for Christmas this year, I wondered if I really needed it. Two summers ago, I had completed the wonderful class Women in Art History at West Valley college taught by Dr. Cynthia Napoli-Abella Reiss. But I only recognized the names of 80 of the 400 artists listed in the table of contents of Great Women Artists. There exists a whole world of women artists to learn about. As an aside, you can purchase the book from the online shop of the Museum of Craft and Design.
What drew you to the fiber art medium over others?
I was born, bred and educated in Ohio. Every summer we would religiously attend the county fair. I remember being enamored by the quilts on display each year. Math and Art were my favorite subjects in school. I took a bit of a detour in college, majoring in Women’s Studies, Humanities and Journalism and minoring in English. I mistakenly thought art was not a serious career choice thus I had not picked a university which offered a Fiber Art major. It wasn’t until I was 23 that I visited the Riffe Gallery in Columbus, Ohio and saw a sampling of pieces on exhibit from Quilt National 1999. When I saw Susan Shie’s quilt The Teapot/High Priestess (Card #2 of the Kitchen Tarot), I had the epiphany that I wanted to become a fiber artist.
