Textile Art: Wearable Patchwork Appliqué

Transform a cherished pre-loved garment into a personalized piece of textile art in this tactile, hands-on workshop. Participants will explore the creative potential of patchwork appliqué, hand-embroidery, and sewing to breathe new life into reclaimed clothing and fabric remnants while discovering unique ways to celebrate texture and pattern.

By the end of this workshop, participants will be able to:

• Deconstruct and assess a worn garment or fabric keepsake to determine its creative potential for upcycling.
  
• Design a custom textile collage using appliqué techniques and mixed-media design principles.
  
• Apply basic hand-embroidery stitches to add decorative texture and structural detail to fabric.
  
• Utilize a sewing machine to effectively secure patches, finish raw edges, and modify garment forms.
  
• Complete a wearable or functional project that integrates multiple learned textile techniques into a cohesive narrative.

Classes must meet a minimum enrollment number to run; please don’t wait until the last minute to register!

About the instructor:

Laura Marsh (b.1982 Binghamton, NY) lives and works in Miami. She received her MFA from Yale University School of Art [Sculpture (2009)] and a BFA from the Cleveland Institute of Art [Painting (2006)]. Marsh is a textile artist who incorporates text about contemporary social and class issues. Her primary materials are fabric combined with statements quoting well-known labor leaders, feminist icons, and her own poetic musings. 

She has been an artist in residence at Oolite Arts, Miami Beach, Mana Contemporary, Miami and New Jersey, and Siena Art Institute, Siena, Italy. Dot Fiftyone Gallery in Miami represents Marsh. 

Selected solos include “Resilient Threads: Connecting Galaxies Across Hemispheres” at Dot Fiftyone Gallery (2025), “Unsolicited Advice,” HUB-Robeson Galleries, Penn State University, Pennsylvania (2023), “Knots Hold Intentionality,” DotFiftyone Gallery (2022), “Entwined,” Deering Estate (2020), “New Havens,” Locust Projects, Miami, Florida (2018).  Marsh has exhibited nationally at venues including The Whitney Museum of American Art (2016), Printed Matter (2023), Jane Lombard Gallery (2021), Locust Projects (2018), and Bernice Steinbaum Gallery (2023). Marsh is in the collections of Francie Bishop Good and David Horvitz, Victoria J. Rogers, Dennis and Debra Scholl, Mariangela Capuzzo, and Mindy Solomon.