Artist Biography
Darcy Hunter is a quilt artist residing in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada. She creates original art landscape wall hangings with fabric and stitch, using her sewing machine as her paint brush. Her representational fibre art works are inspired by her love of the natural world and evoke the colour, movement, and sense of place of her surroundings. She shows her dedication to the environment by upcycling some of the textiles she uses, to create a more meaningful process.
Darcy finished a grant in 2023 with Barker’s Point Elementary School through an Arts Smarts Grant called ““Connecting to the Environment and Place through Art”. She has also recently completed two New Brunswick-based grants: The first was a Creation Grant through ArtsNB which is titled “Beautiful New Brunswick”, where she captured the natural beauty of her home province in a series of large art quilts. In conjunction with this grant, she also worked with elementary students at Nashwaak Valley School through an Arts Smarts grant, to teach her passion and collaborate with the students to create a large textile piece for the school community.
She is a juried member of Craft NB, and a Regional Co-Rep of Studio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA). SAQA is a dynamic community of over 3700 fibre artists worldwide. Her successful art practice propelled her to participate in artist residencies with the Fredericton Arts Alliance in 2023, the City of Fredericton in 2020/21, and to exhibit at Gallery 78, Charlotte Street Art Centre, and the University of New Brunswick Art Centre. In addition to having her work in many Maritime shows and shops, her work can be found in many private collections all over North America.
Darcy is a part-time elementary school teacher. She loves teaching and has shown her commitment to the art community through online classes, speaking engagements, and her publication of numerous articles in Art Quilting Studio Magazine and other prestigious magazines. Darcy continues to learn new techniques and expand her creative process so that she can continue to grow as an artist.
*Photo by Emily Rioux of CraftNB
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Artist Statement
Nature moves me. It ignites a spark that is indescribable. I take my camera when I explore to document inspiring moments in the ever-changing landscape. Sometimes the way the sun is sparkling through the trees, a bird perching proudly on a high branch, or the ocean waves thundering onto the shore stirs my artistic soul. It might be the same place I have been to numerous times before, but on that day, it evokes a different feeling that I want to capture.
I am captivated by the local landscape and its continuous change in form as a response to the elements. I live in a picturesque area in New Brunswick where I can walk through the forest or enjoy the Saint John (Wolastoq) River, from my front door.
I use these snapshots as a guide to help me to decide how I will represent my idea with fabric, thread, and other textiles. I essentially “paint” with these textiles. I am passionate about upcycling, so there is always a mix of those and contemporary textiles in my pieces. I manipulate fibres to create interesting textures to mimic the form and shape of the subject. Often, I also add treasures I have found on my travels to my art pieces. From start to finish, my larger art quilts can take upwards of 50 hours to complete. I use free-motion machine embroidery as my main technique, with hand-stitching used as the final touches.
Commissions usually pose an artistic challenge. I feel honored to be a part of my client’s vision and to bring it to life. I give a part of myself to every piece that I make, and I value the human connections that are made with these endeavors.
*Photo by Emily Rioux of CraftNB
