Visit A Quilt Studio Like No Other: Maria Shell’s Alaska Off-the-Grid Hideaway
Peeking into an artist’s workplace can open a window into their creative process. When you consider how much time and effort it takes to create a body of work like Maria Shell’s – full of intricate improvisational piecing, exuberant color, and innovative techniques – and the prolific nature of her quilt making, you just know that the spaces in which she creates must be exceptional. I asked Maria to share some insight into her process and share her creative studios (in her home in Anchorage, and in her cabin in the Alaskan wilderness) with Quilting Arts readers.
Photos by Paul Scannell unless otherwise noted
Vivika In your book Improv Patchwork you wrote, “Not everyone has a large studio with loads of storage … I really do think it is important for makers to have a space.” Like Virginia Woolf, you believe that having dedicated personal space is one of the keys to creativity. Tell me about your philosophy for having a separate studio and how it has influenced your artwork over the years.
Maria Having a designated space for quilt making is about more than just square footage. It is about being worthy of space, it is about the psychological benefits of space, and the logistics of space. To claim your own space is to say that what you do in the space is worth the real estate it requires. And once you have the space and use it, it is also about the psychological benefit—makers feel better when they are making! And finally, logistics—if you can sneak into your space for five or ten minutes every day, you can actually get a quilt done.
Vivika How has your space changed over time?
Maria My first ‘studio’ was our old laundry room. It was so small, you could easily touch my sewing machine and cutting table (which were across the room from each other) at the same time. My design wall was on the back of the door that led into the house. It was tiny, but it was mine. At the time, we had three small boys and being able to start and stop work over and over again—to change diapers, cook dinner, break up fights—was the way I made every quilt in those early years.
I now have three major stations in my studio—a sewing area, a cutting and pressing station, and my longarm quilting machine. Every large piece of furniture is on wheels and can be rolled to reconfigure things if needed. My studio is filled with weird mementos of my family and my quilting life. For example, the kid’s pencil sharpener is on the wall behind my longarm, and it is loaded down with conference badges from all of the different quilting events I have attended over the years. I like seeing these things every day.
When I get into my studio, I am almost always under deadline, this is great because I am always producing new work. The downside is that I am rarely cleaning! My studio desperately needs a deep clean.
An Off-the-Grid Vacation Studio
We own a cabin in the Wrangell St. Elias National Park located in rural Alaska. Our cabin is off the grid—we haul our own water, get our heat from a wood burning stove, and our electricity from the sun. The cabin was built in 1920 by a gold miner for his new wife. On the back of the cabin is a garage where they stored their Model-T Ford.
That garage is now my summer studio, and it is my favorite place in the world to create. I call it a plein air studio as there are holes in the walls for the breeze to come through. My sewing machine and iron are both solar powered. The studio is minimalistic but perfect. I do have to plan my stitching according to the sun—if it is sunny out, I know I can run everything full blast. If it is a cloudy day, I really must plan my ironing to conserve our solar power.
Vivika What is a typical studio session as you create your fiber art?
Maria I am deadline driven, so almost everything I do has an end date attached to it. If it doesn’t, I try to give it one, so that I will push myself to finish. I am great at starting a quilt, but I often need a deadline to finish. So, often what happens is that I will be working on a particular quilt which has a deadline, and then I will get distracted by another idea, so I start to work on that quilt, too. And then another idea shows up and before I know it, I have all of my design walls filled with ideas, but no finished quilts. I suppose it is a good problem to have.
I try to get all of my office work done in the morning and then spend the afternoon in my studio. Some days the office work lasts until four or five in the evening. When that happens, I still try and get into the studio for just an hour or two. I suppose that is another reason I like deadlines: a quilting deadline means I can prioritize making new work over staring at my computer screen answering emails.
Vivika Lastly, what advice would you give to someone who might just be on the verge of feeling that they need that dedicated corner or nook in their home for creativity?
Maria Over the years, the one thing that has helped me the most to become the quilter I am today is to try and remain fearless. Fear of claiming your own space, or fear of trying to do your own work, or fear of not being good enough, or really fear of anything (but maybe a moose or a bear!) is self-sabotage and benefits no one. On the other hand, if you can be brave and claim your space and use it for the greater good—and quilts and art are part of the greater good—we will all be in a better place.
To learn more about Maria Shell and see even more beautiful photos from her studios, visit her website. Or, better yet, pick up a copy of Quilting Arts Magazine Summer 2021! In it you’ll find the studio tour as well as Maria’s take on creating Braided Curves – an easy improv technique with a complex result. Plus, Maria is also the ‘cover girl’ – so much to celebrate in this one issue.
Best,
Vivika Hansen DeNegre
Editor
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