Artist Statement

Susan G. Zepeda (S.G. Zepeda) considers herself an urban folk artist, with textiles as her primary – though not exclusive - medium.  After a career in public health and nonprofit work, Zepeda turned to her stash of fabrics collected over a lifetime, and began to explore how best to share these with a larger audience.  She’s grateful for the teachers and mentors who helped her along in this later-life journey – Kathleen Loomis, Rosalie Dace, Arturo Sandoval, Joanne Weis, and Sue Benner are acknowledged as particularly strong influences.  From them she learned to explore in series, that her works have more in common with paintings and collage than traditional quilts, to work large, to “just sew” and to let the meaning emerge as the work is created.

Since childhood, watching her mother at her large multi-heddle loom, Zepeda has been fascinated by the way a line – a simple thread – becomes a strong, solid fabric.  Add to that the ways that cultures across the globe – often, but not always, through women’s hands – have embellished these handcrafted fabrics with surface design, dying, beading, careful cutting and more to create a fascinating variety of decorative and useful objects.

One current series shown on this website began as Zepeda explored old family photographs, and sought to translate them through textiles she had on hand. Other works depict fanciful remembered landscapes, or are purely geometric explorations of color and shape. If any of these works speak to you, she is pleased to share them with you.  If you are interested in acquiring any of the pieces on this website, Zepeda can be reached using the Contact form below for information about prices, care and shipping.  Please note that items that are already sold, or otherwise not currently for sale, remain on the website with that information clearly indicated.

Zepeda's work has been exhibited at Louisville Visual Arts (LVA) and PYRO in Louisville KY; Gallery 104 in La Grange KY; and  the Cultural Arts Center in New Albany, IN.  Her work is in private collections in Colorado, Connecticut, Kentucky and Texas.