Kristine A. Luber

It is a rare day when Kristine A. Luber doesn’t have a needle in hand to sew “something.” Luber creates textile landscapes incorporating photographs printed on fabric, thread painting, and bead work She sews fabric bowls and fashions flowers and other women’s wearables from men’s neckties and scraps left over from home sewing projects. Her artwork has been displayed at shows and in galleries in Northeast Kansas and beyond, winning awards in Lawrence, Topeka, DeSoto, and Kansas City, Missouri.

“I make textile collage landscapes by stitching cloth scraps together. Sometimes I print my own photos on fabric which allows me to sew them right into the patchwork. I also sew whimsical semi-realistic flowers and leaves that have wire hidden inside to allow for shaping.

“While the art I exhibit is limited to textiles, I have been teaching adults, teens, and children how to make mosaics from broken tile and dishes since the 1970s. Making beautiful things from castoffs – thereby saving them from the landfill – is always a fulfilling endeavor.”

Luber will provide a trunk show of her art which includes fabric landscapes from greeting card size to four feet long and fabric sculptures of a variety of flowers and leaves. Her accompanying slide show includes many additional pieces. She can also do a “show and tell” of her women’s wearables sewn from old men’s neckties, castoff fabrics, sewing notions, and electrical wire. She will model pieces of clothing made from rescued family heirlooms and re-designed or embellished thrift store finds. In her program she includes what inspires her and interesting details about the sources for many of her unique materials. She often says, “If I can get a needle through it, I can use it in my art.” In her many years as a youth minister and later as a teacher at the North Topeka Community Art Center, she led youth and adults in making individual and group mosaics. So, in a completely separate program, she can show how family castoffs, thrift store finds, and other non-porous materials – specifically broken tiles, dishes, and additional found objects — can be made into mosaic art.

$125 an hour up to $500 per day for workshops, plus travel expenses and lodging if required.

Luber will lead a basic sewing workshop designed to show how working with a needle and thread can help recharge a wardrobe with embellishments and restore much-loved textiles to something beautiful – either wearable or as art. Luber can teach youth and/or adults the basics of mosaic construction from planning the design to selecting and breaking the materials to grouting and finishing.

Program participants will either be required to furnish the materials locally (this is preferred) or pay net cost of items provided by presenter. A materials list will be provided.

A community textile project would be to make an indoor or outdoor banner or flag composed of pieces made by members of the group and then connected into a single whole. A community mosaic would require a one- or two-day group workshop setting.

Program participants will either be required to furnish the materials locally (this is preferred) or pay net cost of materials used. A materials list will be furnished. Additional cost will be incurred if Luber puts finishing touches on the project in her Topeka studio.