IN CONVERSATION WITH LINDA KEMSHALL

Linda Kemshall is an artist, author, quiltmaker and teacher of design and textile arts. Originally trained as a painter, she has enjoyed sewing since she was a child. Linda has been making quilts since 1976 and now works mainly in the field of textiles and mixed media. Along with daughter Laura Kemshall and friend Catherine Nicholls, they have co-authored and published the widely popular book and cd series Thr3Fold - Journal of Creative Vision . In addition to writing course material for the fabulous classes available at the "DesignMatters OnLine Centre", Linda also exhibits regularly as a member of the artists group 'SiX'. We were so thrilled that Linda was able to fit our interview into her busy schedule!

LINDA KEMSHALL

RUNNING WITH SCISSORS STUDIO: Morning person or night owl?
LINDA KEMSHALL: Complete insomniac who never-the-less still gets up with the larks, how else do you fit it all into a day?

FLY BY NIGHT 2007

RWSS: Dogs, Cats or ........
LINDA: Cats every time. I only have two right now but they rule the house. I also keep rare breed hens and ducks.

RWSS: Have you ever held a traditional 9-5 job?
LINDA: Yes, but I've done my best to blank it from my memory!

RWSS: Favorite place you've been or lived?
LINDA: I'm a real homebody. I've traveled to many exciting and exotic places but after a few days there's nowhere I'd rather be than back home with my family and my 'stuff'.

MOONFLIGHT 2006

RWSS: Best dessert?
LINDA: Now there's a tricky question - am I allowed to have them all?

RWSS: Who's on your i-pod?
LINDA: I am at the mercy of my daughters - they have shown me how to do it but then I think why bother?

RWSS: What book have you read recently?
LINDA: I don't read fiction unless I'm on holiday - it's far too distracting and I lose all sense of time, place and reality in a good novel.

RWSS: Favorite quote:
LINDA: "Just do it!" An old friend of mine used to say this long before Nike thought of it.

RWSS: What inspires your creativity?
LINDA: Art, music, words, colour, places - everything I see, hear and experience!

INSPIRATION

RWSS: Best advice you've ever received?
LINDA: I confess I'm not good at taking advice.

RWSS: Worst advice you've ever received?
LINDA: Prefer to ignore advice, good or bad - my mistakes are all my own!

RWSS: What do you do to unwind?
LINDA: I am never more relaxed than when I'm making things. It doesn't matter what; could be cooking, knitting, sewing, painting, whatever...

ONE GOLDEN PEAR 2007

RWSS: If you had to choose another career what would it be?
LINDA: I know how lucky I am to do what I do and I can't imagine life any other way.

RWSS: Are there any of your own pieces that you can't bear to part with?
LINDA: Not really. I am fond of some quilts but the real pleasure is in the making not the owning. If I'd kept them all I'd have been buried under the mountain by now!

RWSS: Best part of your day?
LINDA: The early morning when all things seem possible and I still have the energy to actually do some of them.
RWSS: We agree!

RWSS: I'd be lost without.........
LINDA: I think it's traditional to say my family at this point but if it doesn't sound too shallow I'd also like to say I'd be lost without my books, my paints and my favorite paintbrushes. I get enormous pleasure buying new art materials!

RWSS: What's on the horizon for..........
LINDA: Always something new and absorbing. Laura and I have lots of plans for the website and we're especially excited about offering online TV.

LANDSCAPE - NEW HORIZONS 2007

RWSS: What would you like to be remembered for?
LINDA: Being good at what I do.

RWSS: What would you do with a few extra hours each day?
LINDA: More of the same - the day is never long enough for everything I want to achieve.

RWSS: Do you do anything special for your birthday?
LINDA: I am obsessed by my work and would honestly much rather be working than idle, but one day a year I sit back and let myself be pampered!

VASE OF TULIPS 2008

RWSS: Any words of wisdom?
LINDA: Don't put things off. If you want to do something, why wait?

SIX RED LEAVES 2003

Books of interest by the Kemshall's include 'The Painted Quilt' and the Thr3Fold Journals 1, 2 & 3.

To view more of Linda's beautiful works or to enroll in an online class with 'DesignMatters', please visit her website: http://www.lindakemshall.com