American textile artist Hillary Waters Fayle focuses on the connection between people and nature. Her hand embroidery on leaves elevates the beauty of nature with meticulous stitching and carefully considered colours. Reluctant to classify her work Hillary prefers to let others interpret it. “I think one of the best things about visual art is that there is an openness, and it’s different for everyone who sees it.”

Firstly where did you grow up and where do you live now? 

I grew up in a small town just outside of Buffalo, New York, called Elma. When I was growing up, it was pretty rural, but there has been a lot of development in the last 30 years and lots of the forests and fields have given way to housing. I lived in Buffalo and upstate NY for many years, until I moved to Richmond Va, for graduate school. I found a job which helped to support my studio after school and now, 6 years later, I still (happily) call Richmond my home.

What is your background in textiles?

I have always been interested in textiles, before I really even understood what that meant. My grandmother taught me to knit when I was about 10, and I learned to sew and taught myself to embroider at a young age and was always making dresses for my dolls, or small pillows for my mother and grandmothers – I think the accessibility of using a needle and thread always appealed to me. I studied textile design at Buffalo State College and while I was there I was able to study abroad in Manchester, UK. While I was there, I was enrolled in a specific program where I focused on embroidery.  then got my MFA in the Craft/Material Studies program, focusing in fiber, from Virginia Commonwealth University. 

What is it about textiles as an art form that appeals to you? 

I think I’ve always been drawn to the idea that the objects surrounding you can be useful and beautiful – I think this was clear to me at a young age, and that was part of my desire to create beauty around me. The needle and thread were tools I could easily procure and the simplest way for me to alter what I had around me in a way that felt meaningful.  My work focuses on the connection between people and nature, so whether I’m stitching, drawing, planting seeds, or pulling up weeds, my hands echo the gestures made by thousands of hands over thousands of years. I feel connected to the lineage of people working with textiles, plants and the land. Stitching, like agriculture, can be functional – a technical solution to join materials/a means of survival or, both can be done purely in service of the soul, lifting the spirit through beauty and wonder.  

Do you do your stitching by hand or machine?

Always by hand! I’ve tried with the machine – not embroidery, but just experiments in stitching and I’ve been unable to get results I’m happy with. Working by hand is also important to the idea of the work for me.

How do you stop the leaves from ripping?

I actually don’t do much- just knowing when to work with them is important, and using the smallest needle you can. Certain types of stitching that work well on fabric don’t always translate as well, like satin stitch, so just knowing the material and the stitches well helps. For extremely delicate leaves, I sometimes stabilise the back with an archival medium that helps to maintain the structural integrity of the leaf.

How do you describe your work?

Whatever I’m doing, I try to bring together materials and processes that express the union of humanity and the physical world. I would describe what I do as botanically based art, but quite honestly, I’d prefer just to make it, and not describe it – I think one of the best things about visual art is that there is an openness, and it’s different for everyone who sees it. 

How do you create a piece?

I do draw a lot, and I play with colour in my sketchbook, using watercolours. Sometimes I’ll draw out designs in my sketchbook before I translate them onto a leaf, and sometimes I don’t. If I’m working with an image, I usually draw what I’m going to stitch on the back of the leaf, very loosely, just so that I can get an outline in thread down first.  Blackwork or any type of counted design I do plan out in advance based on the shape of the leaf. 

I know this is a hard question but how long does a bigger piece take?

It truly depends on the type of leaf, and the type of design, and how much I get interrupted by other work/life things! The larger magnolia series I worked on recently took me about three weeks, to make four larger leaves, and I typically work at least eight hours a day. There is always a learning curve, though, so repetition of design elements always goes a little bit faster by the end. 

Do you have any advice for aspiring textile artists?

Keep making, and go deeper! As I’ve gotten older and have done more research into textile history, it’s made me so much more passionate about what I do – I think my natural desire to work with textiles really started to make sense to me when I began to read more about textile history, and I’ve only just scratched the surface! 

Where can people purchase or see your work? 

You can check out more of my work on Instagram and I also have a website with more news and articles, press, etc, and now, as of last month, I have a shop, too! www.hillarywfayle.com I do a lot of commission work, so if you’d like to inquire about a piece, It’s best to just contact me through the site and we can go from there! 

https://www.instagram.com/hillary.waters/

www.hillarywfayle.com