Liz Hamilton Quay is the Assistant Professor of Textile and Materials Studies at Kutztown University. She followed her passion for the manipulation of fabric to earn her MFA at Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia in Fibers and Materials Studies. Her journey began at Kutztown University, where she proudly received her bachelor’s degree in Art Education and a BFA in Craft, concentrating in Fibers. Her creative approach is based on her natural curiosity for materials and a joy for making. Through a variety of techniques ranging from traditional fibers to digital formats such as video, she creates work that explores innate visceral feelings.
I am driven by my relentless urge to describe feelings through materiality. Conceptually, my work is based on the tension or the stagnation that is generated through managing emotional balance. The journey is never smooth; therefore, I aim to capture the varying stages that emerge. As a sculptural fiber and materials artist, I am drawn to the manipulation of flexible materials. My work tends to be varied in appearance but it focuses on the central theme of soft and hard elements clashing together; the transformation of weird or ugly things into something that is delicate and perceived as beautiful; and the act of stitching and binding. This is explored through the tension created by stitching and pulling, shape and form, rigid verses free-flowing, and the use of bodily-like materials. All of which become the physical embodiment of maintaining emotional balance. Ultimately, I hope to evoke an alluring outcome from the pain.
- MFA, Crafts, Fibers and Material Studies, Temple’s Tyler School of Art, Philadelphia, PA
- BFA & BSed summa cum laude, Crafts and Art Education, Kutztown University of Pennsylvania, Kutztown, PA
Assistant Professor of Textiles Kutztown University of Pennsylvania
NAFTAE 