Member Profile: Celeste B Janey

Celeste B. Janey, has been making representational (realist) art quilts since 2000. She has a website, http://www.yellowrosema.com/. According to her website, Céleste's personal motto is, "I'll give you the best that I got!" She founded The BEE, a quilt training component of Yellow Rose, which promotes and empowers women to express the natural gifts of creativity that move their soul.

Celeste recently answered some questions so we can get to know her better.

Celeste B Janey

How did you learn the techniques you use? 

Mentor (Juanita Yeager/ Anne Sullivan)/ self-taught

Do you have a favorite color palette?

Earth tones

Mantra 2 (detail)

Are you working on a particular theme or series now?

I'm working on a weaving/ embroidered series. Two of my most favorite, most passionate techniques. One from the old country (Ghana Africa which I visited 3 years ago), another which I'd learned, but steadily been improving 15 yrs. ago.

African Triangles

How do you work? Give us some insight into your design process?

I try to do a little something daily, but at least once a week, I work on one of the pieces that is in my studio. I have at Least 3 pieces going at a time: short term, mid-term; extended term (short term: just needs quilting; mid-term: needs detailing and quilting; extended term: just past the designing stage in my design book; pieces all over design table).

What are your sources of inspiration?

My life, other sisters, or that of close friends.

MJ29 Benjamin

How are you making the most of your SAQA membership? Which aspects of the organization are you enjoying?

Ed. Committee. I get to use the skills I was trained in, to help others.

Trunk show piece

This gorgeous piece for the trunk show was made by SAQA member Celeste B Janey...

"African Triangles"

Weaving is the creative way in which my cultural ancestry best explodes from my soul, in my work.  It finds its way through the various textures and mediums of fibers, in my workshops.

A few summers ago, a colleague and I were exploring thickened dyes used with silk screening.  Through this process, I realized I could continue my individual quest of finding backgrounds in which to continue to weave various fibers found in my "artist" environment.

This piece, background, is from this exploration.  This piece is screened from thickened dyes, layered on several passes on white PFD (prepared for dye) cotton.  It wasn't until recently, that the piece called to me to be woven with ribbons, machine embroidered and quilted.  The embroidered stitches enhancing the triangular shapes, exemplify the colours and feelings of my Africa.

Submission details for the trunk show:
Each piece must be 9”x 11” - unbound please as the edges will not be visible and the piece will be mounted on matboard.  Please keep any dimensional embellishments at least 1" from the edges.  Include a one page ( 8 1/2” x 11” sheet of paper) artist statement that has your name, the title of the piece, materials and techniques used and any contact information or other information about the piece you wish to include.   Please also email a copy of this statement to Sue at sue@suebleiweiss.com

Send the artwork Sue Bleiweiss to (or bring it to a future SAQA regional meeting) Please include $5.00 (make checks payable to SAQA) to cover the supplies needed to mount and frame the artwork.

Note that this is an open ongoing call for SAQA MA/RI members and there is no deadline to submit a piece for it.  This is a non juried show open to all members of the SAQA  MA/RI region so if you send a piece it will be included.