Fibre Artist – Jennifer Cooper, West Vancouver, BC
Jennifer Cooper and one of her projects – a Jean Jacket with special meaning
Jennifer Cooper has a heritage that inspires her artwork, her west coast and fishery series in particular. She feels strongly that the Canadian fisheries, whether east or west coast, was a dominant factor in the settlement of this country and needs to be highlighted. The off-shore fisheries were popular for centuries before official discovery and settlement of this country and has been a critical factor in the development of Canadian culture.
Jennifer Cooper – The Fisheries and Family History
Jennifer dates her first piece of fibre art to the summer she was 12 when in she spied a project in a popular women’s’ magazine of the day. It involved two cotton handkerchiefs, melted crayons and over-dyeing with black dye. She credits her older brothers with teaching her how to sew. The finished piece, artfully quilted, rests on a side table in her current home.
Although Jennifer frequently states that she creates her art for herself, she has participated in a number of shows over the years.
After a hiatus of many years, Jennifer returned to quilting and fibre art on the millennial New Year’s eve. Her husband was working and she needed to keep busy.
The to-scale fishing dory
Since 2000 Jennifer created a series of works featuring the cod fisheries of the east coast and west coast salmon. She even created a 1/3 scale 3-D fishing dory replica!
Jennifer Cooper – Paper, Pet Project
Jennifer works in a variety of media and is currently working on a series of pet collages using papers. Unexpected commissions have resulted following exhibition of a piece she created for a friend.
Jennifer Cooper Quilt on Book Cover
A few years ago Jennifer was surprised to learn that one of her pieces had been photographed at a show and used on the cover of ‘A Quilter’s Guide to Floral Quilts’ by Marion Haslam – an incident that seems to have ended well.