On Pivoting Toward (And Sustaining) A Creative Work Life: Anne Sorenson

In anticipation of our upcoming markets, we’re touching base with a few of our vendors.

Today, we’re talking to textile and fiber artist Anne Sorenson about inspiration and the healing nature of embroidery.

ABOUT ANNE SORENSON

Anne Sorenson is a textile and fiber artist who focuses on bringing the beauty of nature into homes through embroidery and natural dyeing.

Her hand stitched embroidery artwork ranges from 3-inch miniature embroidery hoops to large, fine-art pieces. They’re inspired by the positive relationship that blooms when people and nature work as one.

Another way she work with nature is through natural dyeing with plants— using everything from kitchen scraps to plant extracts. She creates unique items from dyed fabric to give thrifted clothes a new life.

1. Describe Anne Sorenson with three emojis.

🧵🌿👚

2. What does being a creative person mean to you? How do you claim your creative identity?

I tend to look at creativity through the root of the word… to create. Most people view it as having original and new ideas, but for me, that puts unwanted pressure on the creator. I'm happy to make things with my hands. Sometimes they're new and unique ideas, and sometimes it's just the practice of making something cool or pretty and not worrying about how original the idea is. So as long as I'm creating, I'm happy calling myself a creative.

3. Looking back on the last year, what have you learned from your business or creative work?

This last year has been both a challenge and an opportunity all wrapped up in one, so I've learned to accept things as they come. When hours at my part-time job remained scarce through the pandemic, I had more time to focus on my art and to see where running a creative business could take me. At the same time, I suffered huge disappointments with large events getting cancelled at the last minute (Pecan Street Fest 😢).

I've learned that I'll have thrilling and inspiring weeks and months, and I'll have weeks of struggle and stagnation. All I can do is roll with the punches and keep going in whichever direction keeps me sane and happy.

4. Describe the feeling you get when you make something new that’s in line with your vision.

Whenever I create something that truly feels “right,” I get really giddy. My husband will usually have to deal with me for the rest of the day. I’m just jumping around the house— not being able to settle down to anything because I'm so excited by what I just created. You know you've created something good when every time you look at it, you smile.

5. How do you get into the headspace to make something new?

I find it’s very difficult to force myself into a good headspace for creating. In fact, I've often had to take a week or so away from creating when I'm feeling uninspired in order to give my mind some time to rest and hope that the inspiration comes back.

One way I help myself create is by writing down ideas when they strike, and taking lots of reference photos when I happen upon some cool nature. That way, down the road, if I'm approaching a time when I need to create (but maybe I'm not feeling very inspired) I can reference those ideas and photos to get started.

6. If you could collaborate with any vendor on The Front Market lineup, who would it be?

There are so many amazing vendors. It's hard to choose who I'd most want to work with, but I'd probably say Little Green Press ATX. Audrey's art is simply beautiful, and who knows, it could look cool with some little embroidered accents.

7. What do you hope for the future of Texas?

I hope that the future of Texas looks a little more kind. Texas can be a difficult, restrictive place to live. We're lucky to be in Austin where everyone's a little more open, so I hope to see that attitude spread.

8. What has the word “community” come to mean to you this last year?

Over the past year, "community" has come to mean the people who stick by through the hard times. COVID-19 made everyone's life difficult, and it was easy to pick out the people who became family during a time when none of us could actually see our families. There was also the artistic community that gathered around each other as we all supported one another through a time when none of us knew how the future was going to go. I had people reach out for commissions when money was tight, and groups that threw markets together even when restrictions were making that difficult. I'm always so grateful for the amazing artist community here in Austin.

9. What are some of your goals for 2022?

One of my biggest goals for 2022 is to create for myself. This past year, I was so worried about where money was coming from, that I often lost myself in creating things I thought people wanted to buy rather than making things I actually felt inspired to create. So next year, I want to bring the focus back onto my personal work and find the balance between making sales and making art for me.

10. Where do you find inspiration?

I find inspiration most in nature. Nature is endlessly and effortlessly beautiful. All we have to do is open our eyes to it. Whenever I'm walking through a garden or taking a hike through a park, I'm constantly whipping out my phone to take reference photos for later.

11. How has embroidery been a healing process for you?

Embroidery forces me to slow down. Often, we don't give ourselves time to reflect or to heal. Embroidery helps me work through things one stitch at a time. If there is a time that I feel a thousand stressful thoughts flying around my brain, fighting for attention, I can turn to embroidery. Because then, I have to focus on each individual stitch. I can calm down and just focus on the work in front of me.

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Future Front TexasDecember 10, 2021Comment