ARTIST BIOGRAPHY

Susan Schapira was born 1952 in Los Angeles, California, and has been a resident of Anchorage since 1976. She became interested in fabric and fiber art at a young age and began making art quilts in 1985. While continuing to work full-time as a nurse, she has studied with well-known quilt artists at such venues as Fairbanks summer Arts Festival, Quilt Surface Design Symposium in Ohio, Penland School of Crafts in North Carolina, and at the Fibre Forum in Australia.

Susan’s quilts are distinguished by their mix of ethnic textiles and her hand-dyed fabrics, blended in a raw-edged reverse appliqué technique. She has been teaching these techniques for several years in Anchorage and at the Fibre Forum in Australia.

Her work is in the permanent collections of:

Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC
Anchorage Museum of History and Art
Alaska State Museum
Alaska State Council of the Arts. 

 Exhibits include:

solo show at the Alaska State Museum in Juneau 2004
solo exhibit “Wanderings” at the Anchorage Museum of History and Art  2003
 “Earth Fire and Fibre” at the Anchorage Museum 2005, 2001, 1997 (Juror‘s Award)
 “Surface Tensions” with Linda Brady Farr at Bunnell Street Gallery in Homer 1999
 Alaska Pacific University’s Grant Hall Gallery in Anchorage
American Quilter’s Society national show, Paducah, Kentucky 1999
“Visions,” in San Diego, CA 1998
“Quilts: Stitching a New Tradition” 4-woman show at the Anchorage Museum of History and Art, 1995.

Her quilts have appeared in many other group invitational and juried shows in Alaska, Washington, California, Ohio, Minnesota, Georgia, Australia and Germany.

gallery views   |   artist's statement   |   interview

Online Exhibits  |  Alaska State Museum Home

Web posted February 2005 © Alaska State Museum 2005