Meet the artists James & Sara Blix
This autumn, we are pleased to welcome James and Sara Blix to the Maple Lake Library for our Autumn Art Show. This talented husband-and-wife team brings two unique artistic perspectives to the exhibit, showcasing the beauty of creativity through fabric, color, texture, and paint. Together, Sara and James offer visitors the opportunity to experience two very different artistic approaches while sharing a common passion for creativity and expression.
‘Summer Haze’
James Blix
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“The most memorable aspect of the small North Dakota town where my family lived was the haunting landscape — vast stretches of flat, open land exposed by a receding lake; I have been painting or photographing some version of it since I’ve been making art.”
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After retiring and while attending art classes at the University of Minnesota, James Blix turned his attention away from a lifetime of viewing subjects through the lens of a camera, to re-creating what he saw with paint on canvas. He not only earned the respect of his instructors who encouraged him to show his work, but was awarded a Fine Arts degree as well.
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His art is contemporary. A scene — the combination of shapes, color and space become alive with James's brush strokes; its simplicity is moving; it resonates with one’s soul.
Sarah Blix
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​Design, color, and culture are the elements of Sara’s unique face quilts. Utilizing fabric with aboriginal and dream-like patterns for the background of her work, she creates textile likenesses of young prenuptial women inspired by the fabric’s design. As a result, her work is not defined by any specific genre, but embodies stylized images, guided by ethnic motif and cultural research.
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Though the art of creating faces with fabric is new to her, sewing is not. As a young girl, Sara was an active member of her county’s 4-H club and chose to sew clothing as a project. Over the years, Sara’s sewing interests evolved from clothing to quilts. Presently, because of her recent introduction to world fabrics with brilliant colors and wild designs, her sewing skills and imagination have advanced to creating fabric art.
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