We recently connected with Blair Tyler Peters and have shared our conversation below.

Blair, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

Several years ago I applied for a Fulbright Award. Even though I was a finalist and didn’t win the award, the application process was tremendously impactful and laid the foundation for my current work. The research, writing and interview process required for the award gave me the opportunity to learn about a number of women creatives in history that I had previously been unaware of. The more research I did, the more I began to understand the impact of systemic cultural oppression of women that has existed since the beginning of Western Culture and continues today. My current work brings attention to this and celebrates gender equality by using patterns, inspired by traditional quilts, needlepoint, and vintage textiles, to honor women historically associated with these arts and to challenge the structures and operations that tend to marginalize certain kinds of artistic production while centralizing others.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’m an interdisciplinary research-based artist working with paint, sewing and clay. Growing up in North Carolina I was surrounded by fabrics, sewing and quilting. My father designed and manufactured a children’s clothing line that featured smocking and applique, while my mother was skilled in needlework, including quilting, sewing, knitting and needlepoint. I am deeply influenced by their work and the celebrated craft traditions of the American South.
I recently received an MFA in Painting at Pratt Institute and split my time working in Manhattan, NY and Inverness, Ca. My current paintings explore relationships between patterns, symbols and feminine iconography and speak to the female perspective. Rendering abstract representations of women, the work deploys stereotypically gendered imagery, to highlight the social realities of women around the world. The work is inspired by the 18th Century English designer Anna Garthwaite’s silk embroidered textiles and is expanding to include contemporary textile and needlework patterns and color to represent women in modern day society.
The paintings are created with acrylic paint and medium on canvas. Using repeated patterns inspired by textile designs multiple layers of paint build up to create a dense textural surface. I’m always working on multiple paintings simultaneously to allow for drying time and spontaneous composition formation. Every painting develops on its own time. I never know what the end result will be until it makes itself clear. To me, that’s the most interesting part of making a painting – letting go of the outcome while staying open to the process.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

I read a lot. Over the years I’ve amassed a collection of books about or written by women artists. I find I get different things from various books each time I read them. It all depends upon what’s up for me at the time. But overall, these books provide inspiration and recognition that I’m part of a continuum of women artists who share similar struggles and successes. One of these books on my shelf now, is Ninth Street Women. It highlights the talents of five extraordinary women artists living and working in NYC during the 1950’s, as well as the struggles they endured as women artists in a male dominated art world.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

For me the most rewarding aspect of being an artist is the process of bringing an idea to life, whether it be a painting, sculpture, or garden. Creativity is just that: bringing ideas into reality. Each project or painting is different, but the process is generally the same: it begins with a vision, followed by a period of problem solving which, ultimately, leads to a final result.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.blairtylerpeters.com
• Instagram: blairtylerpeters

Image Credits
Federico Savini