Loving this series of embroideries created by textile designer Richard Saja. The New York-based artist and curator embroiders bright and whimsical embellishments on top of traditional French toile. In an interview posted on Etsy he gives us an insight into his art and offers some encouragement for budding artist:

“My interest for embroidery sprang from the necessity of keeping up with production for a line of cushions I was selling under the name MARISAAL. I had met an amazing embroiderer on the subway by overhearing her conversation here in New York, and she was the only one who embroidered the toile for me back then. Soon, after I picked up a needle, I found the perfect outlet for my OCD inclinations and overall fastidiousness: embroidery. Having no natural talent for painting or drawing, I found that a needle and floss allowed me to accomplish very similar results and that I actually did have some innate talent for it.”

“The one thing I’d like to encourage is originality. It’s okay to start out aping other peoples’ work, but I like to see young embroiderers forge ahead into new territories rather than recycling the same few motifs over and over.”

“I don’t think of myself as a technically accomplished stitcher, being more interested in the conceptual aspect of my work, so I can’t really speak to that. I keep going back to the same few stitches time and again: satin, split, bullion, and my favorite, the French knot.”

You can follow the artist on his blog, Facebook and Instagram.

Images: Courtesy of Richard Saja.

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