Biography

I completed two art degrees at Indiana University before learning to do what my Hoosier grandmothers had done without a high school education.  My grandmothers died a long time before I was ever interested in quilts.  (My mother knew nothing of making quilts.  She went to college and become a teacher.  My mother is 91 now and she has always liked everything I make.)

 When I started making quilts in 1973 there were no classes to take.  My early quilts were made totally from scrap fabrics and without knowing the techniques of making quilts. From the beginning I made art quilts which broke all traditional rules.  Soon I read all of our library’s books that had anything to do with quilts.  As I learned techniques I also made some quilts that were more traditional.  In my reading I became fascinated by the history of American quilts and the traditions, folklore, religion, and superstition that relate to quilt making.  My husband’s Mennonite grandmother also encouraged me.  She was politely accepting of my nontraditional quilts too.

In the late seventies I began teaching quilt making in continuing education classes at Ball State University.  My only promise was to save people from making the same mistakes I had made.  I did a lot of inspiring and challenging while my home economics trained students taught me sewing techniques.  We had many students repeat beginning quilt making classes because we had so much fun.  As I developed more classes to teach, my techniques improved but I still continued to stretch myself more and more in non-traditional directions.  In the 1980’s I did a great deal of lecturing and teaching nationwide.  I have taught and exhibited at quilt symposia from coast to coast.  In my teaching I encourage innovation and risk taking.  We always have fun.

Like most quilt makers I purchased fabric wherever I found it and accumulated hundreds of yards of cloth.  But in 1992 my life as an artist took a new direction.  Ann Johnston of Oregon taught me the basic techniques of dye painting on cloth.  Now almost all of the cloth I use is plain white cotton that I have painted with permanent dyes that adhere to the fibers.  I pour, brush, print, and stamp dye onto fabric.  I use brushes, rollers, fingers and anything else to apply dye.  Fabric preparation and the whole dyeing process are time consuming and add a lot of extra work.  In the dye painting process I have found what I absolutely love.  Now most of my piecing and quilting is done with a sewing machine.  I work intuitively from start to finish so my quilts usually develop into something unexpected.

Personal Information: In 1966 married Jon Moll, Muncie attorney; two adult children; active volunteer in the Muncie community; love of travel influences artistic development

Education:  AB degree in art at Indiana University 1965; MAT degree in art at Indiana University with textile emphasis 1967