HUNTLEY — Sun City resident Karen Semancik portrays the places she loves in fabric and stitching. Her experiments in art quilting began in 1989 after she retired from teaching and moved to Sun City.
Semancik said, “One of my neighbors encouraged me to attend a Quilt Guild meeting. I was wowed by all the beautiful quilts that the members had made. I decided to give it a try.”
Surprisingly, Semancik had never once sewn.
“I had no experience in sewing. I started to go to classes, but I was not enjoying the precision that was required in quilting. I went to a retreat in Wisconsin and was introduced to art quilting. I found I loved the free form of creating pieces.”
Semancik imagined creating landscapes in her own way. She started layering, playing with the textures and colors, blending pieces to create depth and detail to represent the landscapes she loves, and focusing on the beauty of nature.
Semancik said, “I found inspiration in walking around Sun City, walking along the lake, viewpoints of water, and birds in the trees and sky. I enjoy the creative process most where I can experiment without restraints.”
Her techniques were self-taught, or as she modestly says, “I make it up as I go along.”
Semancik has exhibited and sold her art at craft shows in the area and in Sun City.
Pat Cox, a resident of Sun City fell in love with her beautiful pieces.
Cox said, “I love the pieces that represented Southwest. I kept buying her beautiful work and when I bought a piece that had a bird in it, I approached Karen and asked her if she could do a textile portrait of a horse for my daughter-in-law, Elizabeth Gaffron.”
Semancik worked from a photo and used color and texture to capture the image of the beautiful white horse, Cricket.
Cox said, “It took my breath away. It was perfect. When Elizabeth opened the package, she gasped in delight and said, ‘Oh my gosh, it’s Cricket.’”
Cox arranged a meeting for Cricket to be introduced to the artist.
Semancik noted, “He is a beautiful horse.”
Semancik has had other special requests as well.
“I completed a portrait of a beloved puppy and I am currently working on a pet portrait, of a much-loved American Eskimo,” she said.
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