BANGOR, Maine, United States – Great art often has nothing to do with brushes or canvas. For Jennifer Rozens, a long-time fiber-artist who has lived in Canada and the U.S., the best creations come from cloth. She specializes in intricate, quilt-sized artworks worthy of galleries and the homes of dedicated collectors.

“I’ve done hundreds of fiber-art pieces,” Jennifer said. She likes to focus on shapes and colors in her interpretations of traditional patterns. Each creation may take several months “if I’m working at it all the time.

“Unlike some fiber-artists who develop recognizable styles, I’m not interested in constantly doing the same sorts of patterns,” Jennifer said. “There’s always something I’m trying to convey. Some of my works have really loopy titles, like Seeking Reality, Sufficient Grace and Yellow Phoenix. My friends like to tease that I’ll take as many colors of ugly fabric as I possibly can and put them together into something that looks good.”

Many of Jennifer’s best works have entered private collections in the U.S., Canada, Japan, China and Australia. They’ve sold at prices up to US$5,000, often at galleries and special shows. Some appear in books and magazines.

One titled The Wall, displayed at the Janice Charach Epstein Memorial Museum Gallery in 1993, is now on permanent installation at the Fleischman Residence at the same Jewish Community Center in West Bloomfield, Michigan, and replicates the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem. “People came up and placed prayers into my quilt because it had pockets that opened at the sides,” Jennifer said. The prayers were faxed by the gallery to Israel and then placed in the Wailing Wall.

“Fiber-art’s a global activity,” Jennifer said. “Recently, I appeared in a Japanese quilt publication. Quilters in Japan are very meticulous and do work similar to mine.

“I quilt very closely together and hand-do all my pieces. In the past, I didn’t do anything by machine. Sitting at a sewing machine felt too much like work. I’d rather sit with little pieces of fabric, sew them together, see what it looks like and go on from there.

“But since arriving in Maine, I received a super-tricked-up sewing machine and have completed three quilts on the machine. This new ability has super-enhanced my productivity and creativity.”

Jennifer welcomes buyers to commission works, but always on an understanding that she keeps creative control. “I like working with cotton, with strong materials,” she said. “My inspiration comes entirely from within. I’m always looking for ways to express what I feel. My satisfaction comes from having a concept and putting it into play, creating it.

“At times, the creative process resembles meditation. When sitting with a needle in my hand or cloth under my machine needle, I don’t need to consider anything else. It’s very good for the inner being, which nurtures more creativity.”

What distinguishes fiber-art from traditional quilts? “Every piece is an original, something self-designed, usually for hanging, not to go on beds or match a couch,” Jennifer said. “I don’t use patterns. My work’s based on geometrical shapes, but I don’t go to pattern books and work from them.”

Jennifer lives in a three-member household with her husband Ivar and son Ben. She’s an avid reader and able writer who spent many years as a bookseller and antique-quilt dealer.

Born and raised in Champaign, Illinois, in the late 1960s, Jennifer edited a high-school newspaper. After attending Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, she completed her education in Michigan at Detroit’s Wayne State University in 1987. At times, she worked as a paralegal and legal secretary.

“I always did art of some sort, but I’m bad at drawing,” Jennifer said. “In school, I did better at geometry than algebra. In junior high, I had a great art teacher who let me do batik. I loved playing with surface designs, the dyes and colors.

“Later, I did oil paintings that were pretty abstract. In part, I earned my way through school by doing art. Eventually, I tried almost every hobby you could mention.”

In 1987, Jennifer turned to fiber-art. “I had a friend who quilted. On her advice, I started too. Once I started, I couldn’t stop.

“People think you need incredible patience for fiber-art. But the motivation comes from being extremely impatient to see the results.”

Some of Jennifer’s talent may be hereditary. “As a child, I sat and watched my grandmothers working on quilts,” she said. “One of them taught me how to embroider. The other taught me how to quilt.” A box of quilting scraps left by a grandmother contributed pieces to various prized artworks.

“When my Mom was 60 years old, I taught her to quilt too,” Jennifer said. “She spent her later years having a great deal of fun with the needle.”

Well-done artworks have tremendous lasting power. “To me, good fiber-art should look like it’ll last for 100 years,” Jennifer said.

Properly cared for, fiber-art can persist as long as the building where it hangs – and look every bit as good.

Jennifer can be contacted at: jennifer.rozens@gmail.com


Needle and cloth make a positive impact
on 'the inner being', Jennifer says.

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