Katie Pasquini Masopust: It is so great to be talking with you. You were our first teacher at the new Alegre Retreat and we had such a great time. Your students did an amazing job. So it is so good to chat with you again. Let's get started. When did you first realize that you were an artist.

Fran Skiles: That would have been when I was old enough to hold a crayon. I remember getting in trouble with scissors, I just had to have them. It was one of my tools early on. I just about poked my eye out when I was a tiny kid and remember my parents being furious with me. I was wielding a crayon and everything else! I was cutting, pasting and drawing. Then someone gave me some fabric, I don't think they even gave me a needle and thread, so it was cut, tie and glue. I thought that I was an artist in the second or the third grade. I was in my art class when a visiting professor came to the classroom. He singled me out and said you are going to be an artist someday. Well I didn't have a clue what he was talking about,  but I understood the concept. The reason he said that I was going to be an artist was because I wasn’t following the teacher’s instructions. I suppose most artists turn a blind eye to instructions. I‘ve found that to be true in my workshops, students always go their own way. That is what I find so exciting about teaching. I was directed into sewing as a child, making my doll clothes and my own clothes. In high school it wasn't cool to be in home ec. so I stayed away from it. In college I received a BA  in home economics with a minor in art. I didn't know what was in store for me but I was following my passion. And I was also trying to stay away from chemistry and math. I did have some motive there.

Katiepm: When you were in college getting your B.A. what was your medium and form of expression?

Fran Skiles: Tailoring, sewing and dress design. In my art classes I took figure drawing and design, the basic art classes, and I took a collage course. The home economics was totally geared to fabric and fabric construction. I had to take a cooking class. I don't know if you have ever done that before, but the nets you have to wear to keep your hair back are hideous! I was just a little naive child, and had no clue about how life was going to unfold for me. How was I going to take care of myself ? That is pretty much the way that I have approached life!

Katiepm: You really didn't do that much art in college then?

Fran Skiles: No, not really. It wasn't until the 1980's when I returned to a community college in Fort Lauderdale. I took courses in oil, acrylic and watercolor. I also took two art history classes. The information that I received from art history classes was the best foundation that I could have given myself. I try to impress that on my students. Art history is an invaluable way to train your eye. I think that is what art history is all about. It came at a good time in my life, I was in my 40's, a wonderful time to pick up and continue my education, just for the joy of exploring other mediums, I was not going for another degree. I also took two photography classes and that was very helpful.

Katiepm: What did you do between these two educations?

Fran Skiles: I had my family and I was manufacturing, so to speak, my craft items at home and selling them at art festivals.

Katiepm: What kind of craft items were you making?

Fran Skiles: Oh my goodness, I did hobby horses, purses, any kind of sewn item. I was in it for self gratification, as we all are, but mainly to sell. That was my goal. If I sold out I was thrilled. I did this for 16 or more years. I didn't go out of Florida because Florida is a breeding ground for art festivals. I traveled all over the state hawking my wares. Each year I would think of a new format, a new solution of arranging and sewing material together. It wasn't too long before I was creating framed pieces. They were original fabric collages, sewn, matted and put under plexi glass. From that time on I started to think of myself more of an artist than a craftsman. The sales were good. The last art festival I did, I introduced art quilts. This was the end of my art festival operation because there was a dirt and the quilts did not sell. I started getting into competitions then, Quilt National and that sort of event. I haven't returned to art festivals but certainly enjoyed every minute of it.

Katiepm: I followed your work for many years. I remember calling you and asking you to teach for me at Alegre Retreat. You weren't too sure and told me that you hadn't really taught before. I was developing a new class for Alegre and for the rest of the year we would talk and encourage each other in our class development. You were worried about filling the class and it was packed within a few months with a waiting list. You were great!

Fran Skiles: Yes, I remember. I started teaching for you in 2000 and 2001. The "skins" started about the same time as that class. I was developing an idea for a show I was scheduled to do at 13 Moons Gallery. I was trying to figure out a way to incorporate my art quilting into a media that would sell. That is how I came across the idea for the "skins". They can be marketed as a collaged painting.  

Katiepm: Fran could you please explain "Skins"

Fran Skiles: I call my collage paintings, “skins”. They are rigid, yet flexible, layered constructions of paper, cloth, paint, gesso, paint, ink and pencil held together with stitching, embroidery, and gloss medium. They are not framed and hang very nicely on a wall.

Katiepm: How do these "skins" compare with your art quilts, is the process similar?

Fran Skiles: Essentially I think of the art quilts and the "skins" as pretty much the same except for the fact that I am now using a stiff canvas to begin with and a gloss medium instead of the stitching. I found out that with gloss medium I could achieve rich layers. When the gloss medium is applied to silk or paper it creates transparent layers. I was using a little bit of paper in my art quilts but not much. With the skins I depend a lot on the paper because paper is so pliable and bendable and it can go in and out of the creases. The skins are much easier than the art quilts. They are quicker and more manageable. I work in series, which is very easy to do with the skins. I can keep a better schedule and produce more than if I were making an art quilt. I approach an art quilt as a one of a kind product and I am always changing my mind in the process. The art quilt can take four or more months to complete and that is just a little bit long for me.

Katiepm: You say you work in series. I was on a panel with you once and you gave a brilliant story of working on several pieces at one time and how you go about creating them. Could you expound upon that for us?

Fran Skiles: I work on several pieces at one time. I have them all up on the wall and I work between them all. At the end of every work session one is holding itself together in my eye better than the others. It could be more brilliant or has more work in it. I try to bring the other pieces up to the “favorite” level. It is a motivator and takes some of the pressure off me. I like to reach this level of work as fast as I can, because the piece is now talking to me and asking me to forge ahead or bring it up. Each one has its own special appeal. I would hope that at the end of the project they all come up to the standard I want to achieve.

Katiepm: Tell us about some of the different series that you have done.

Fran Skiles: All of them are built around nature and sometimes construction. I start with my photography. Often my photography is just a way of getting rid of the blank canvas. The photos give me a bit of direction, they also give me content. I lay in the photos fairly quickly. Occasionally they will be totally covered in the layering process and sometimes there will be a suggestion of these first photos that show later in the piece. The last series that I completed didn't have much photography. I did a lot of abstract painting on Japanese paper and this was layered into the work. These pieces have more of an aerial view of fields and landscape. They are much more abstract. (see images of this series at the end of the interview) I am using found papers as well, whatever strikes my fancy. Lately I have been working with acrylic inks.

Katiepm: How are you finding those

Fran Skiles: I love them. I apply the acrylic inks with a bamboo pen. This is giving me great satisfaction and a lot of interesting marks. This is an important part of my work, bringing in lines.

Katiepm: I am looking at the piece on the wall that I have of yours and it has the nest image and the crow. I love all of the layers and transparencies and textures.

Fran Skiles: That was from a bird series. There were at least ten pieces in that series and they all had something to do with a bird or nest image. The bird series was in 2003.

Katiepm: I am also looking at the apron that I got at the auction at Quilting by the Lake. Each year they have an auction and the teachers are asked to decorate an apron that will be auctioned off for the scholarship fund. We all tried to out do each other. I had embellished my apron with acrylic paint to look like my new series of quilts based on my paintings. Fran you did your whole gesso, gloss medium, photo transfer, stitched, collage thing. It made the front of the apron so stiff. I bid on it and won and when I tried to wear it off the stage I could barely move my legs forward because it was so stiff. I played that up a little tiny bit.

Fran Skiles: I never laughed so hard as that evening, watching you mugging around on the stage and trying to find your seat in the theatre, bent backwards.

Katiepm: You are a fantastic teacher. I know you give your students lots of little hints and good advice. Can you share any of those gems with us.

Fran Skiles: One thing that comes to mind, is not to be concerned about waste. In this day of green that is not such a good thing to say, though. I think the more casual one is about one’s approach and the more materials one has, the smoother things go. I try not to restrict myself. Keeping options open makes for a much more relaxing atmosphere. Another would be to have fun and to enjoy it.

Katiepm: Do you have fun and enjoy it?

Fran Skiles: If I lose that I really don't care if I do art anymore. I am a curmudgeon about fun. That is why I don't do commission work. I don't know how you get over the part about it being someone else’s idea. You do commissions don't you, Katie? How do you get over the part that it is not yours?

Katiepm: I make sure that I really like the subject matter. Then it becomes another exploration. I guide the person in the decision making so that it is something that will be interesting to me and a pleasure to make. It would be tough to go into the studio to make something that I wasn't excited about. Speaking of studios, tell us about yours.

Fran Skiles: My main studio is in Fort Lauderdale in a warehouse. It is about 800 square feet.

Katiepm: My studio is off of my living room. I have never traveled outside of my home to go work. How do you like having your studio elswhere?

Fran Skiles: I do like it. Either way works but I don't have a home that can accommodate the materials and the tables. I used to work at home when I was doing my art quilting in the early 90's. It was a huge space management problem. I just don't have the facilities. In West Virginia I have another little home and I have a little tiny studio there. It is about 9' x 14' and it has a small table and some hanging space. I can manage about 4 or 5 pieces. It is comfortable but it is not the same as my big sloppy studio in Florida.

Katiepm: Do you make different works in the different studios?

Fran Skiles: Yes, I do. I will do the messy part in Florida and then fine tune it in West Virginia. Most of my materials travel with me .

Katiepm: Do you drive between studios?

Fran Skiles: I love the driving part, it is very relaxing to me. I do think about my art work. I think about shapes and form and line. The car is kind of a Zen place to be, you are sort of protected. Don't you think?

Katiepm: I do, I flip very easily into my right brain and start day dreaming about my work. I have missed many an exit off the freeway and have had to circle back around.

Fran Skiles: You can find yourself behind a truck that you have been following from state to state because it has a good design on the back of it.

Katiepm: I know that you take beautiful walks when you are in West Virginia.       

Fran Skiles: Yes, they are glorious. I walk by the Potomac river. I also walk in the Antietam battlefield in Maryland, a significant civil war battlefield. There is a creek that runs through it called Antietam creek. I love to walk there by myself. I feel very comfortable doing that. Those are my two favorite places. I enjoy where water meets land. I don't like being out on the water. The large bodies of water seem very dull to me. Where the water meets the land is where I get most of my serenity, my inspiration and my energy.

Katiepm: I love walks. They are an important way for me to start my day and to get my creative juices flowing.

Fran Skiles: I like to look for and collect rocks and sometimes leaves. I use leaf images in my work. I am not a maple leaf or an oak leaf fan because they remind me of grade school. I like round leaves. I collect them for inspiration.

Katiepm: Do you ever collage them into your work?

Fran Skiles: One time I collaged a palm frond into an art quilt. I am afraid that the material might destruct. That would be cool to embroider or stitch a twig into my work. Hummmm. I am going to dance away from this phone call, what a gift to talk about me!

Katiepm: Well I appreciate it. Thank you so very much.