Ursula's profile
I was born during World War II and was raised by my widowed mother. Growing up during the war and in postwar Germany formed my character and made me accept challenges that ended sometimes with success but more often than not with defeat; both I accepted with equanimity. In 1979, after my husband’s death, I became addicted to prescription drugs and alcohol. I had a massive heart attack in 1981 but survived. It was then that I decided to change my life and that of my children. I chose to emigrate to America. (1985). After having worked for more than 50 years I retired and fulfilled my dream of going to school. I applied at Maryland College of Art (MICA) in 2012 and graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Art (Fiber Arts) in 2015.
With my art I returned to and am inspired by the techniques and images that are found in the folk tradition of my native Germany. Many pieces of folk art are crafted with limited resources; however, there is a fundamental beauty and sincerity in the labor and craftsmanship that shows the reverence with which they were created.
I express my interest in color and form in fiber art pieces, costumes, and Crankie, a form of ballad with pictures performed with a scroll device similar to a moving panorama. Whether in costumes, fiber art pieces or Crankies, the basis for my material selection are repurposing, reusing, not wasting anything. I hand sew everything. The techniques and motifs of my canvas scrolls are embroidery, piecework, and applique. The stories I tell are based on my life and experiences spent in two different countries.
With my art I returned to and am inspired by the techniques and images that are found in the folk tradition of my native Germany. Many pieces of folk art are crafted with limited resources; however, there is a fundamental beauty and sincerity in the labor and craftsmanship that shows the reverence with which they were created.
I express my interest in color and form in fiber art pieces, costumes, and Crankie, a form of ballad with pictures performed with a scroll device similar to a moving panorama. Whether in costumes, fiber art pieces or Crankies, the basis for my material selection are repurposing, reusing, not wasting anything. I hand sew everything. The techniques and motifs of my canvas scrolls are embroidery, piecework, and applique. The stories I tell are based on my life and experiences spent in two different countries.
