Spotlight Terri Shinn, Textile Artist
Asking "what if" inspires Terri Shinn to experiment with texture and color to achieve her vision of the world, often from a macro perspective. She gets close to her subjects...
Surface Design
Surface design adds layers of interest to your art with painting on fabric, fabric manipulation, textile dyes and more. Acrylic paint is fabric-friendly, so easy to use and widely available. If you prefer, you can use fabric dyes, pens and markers in your designs with resists, stencils and stamps. For more options, try fabric manipulation techniques – they create sculptural effects, bringing depth and dimension to your art.
Browse through our projects and inspiration that feature surface design.
Surface Design Inspiration
Spotlight: Jane Dunnewold, Artist, Author, Educator
Creating is vital to the person who is Jane Dunnewold. When not experimenting with surface design techniques and materials and making textile art, she teaches others to find their creative...
Spotlight: Francesca Penchant, Multidisciplinary Artist
A multidisciplinary artist, Francesca Penchant stretches the boundaries of visual art by embracing and celebrating differences. Whether working in surface design, wearable art, photography or film, she finds joy in...
Eco Printing and Dyeing on Textiles
More Eco Printing and Dyeing Inspiration
Spotlight: Lotta Helleberg, Fiber Artist
Combining the essence of the flora that surrounds her Virginia home with her Scandinavian esthetic, Lotta Helleberg uses botanical contact printing (AKA eco-printing) as a foundation for her fiber art....
Spotlight: Chris McLaughlin, Fiber Artist
As a suburban child, Chris McLaughlin knew she was always a farmer at heart. Now she lives her dream raising animals for fiber and flowers for bouquets and botanical dyes. As...
Spotlight: Tatiana Sarasa, Visual Artist
Tatiana Sarasa's art connects her with the earth. That connection gives her so much satisfaction that she promotes the connection through her own work and by providing a collaborative workspace...
More Surface Design
Spotlight: Gunnel Hag, Textile Artist
Gunnel Hag has always seen the world through a creative lens. From painting tiles as a child to running a thriving textile studio, she’s built a career full of color,…
How to Cyanotype on Fabric with Tips and Project Ideas
Cyanotype is a type of printing using a light sensitive mixture on fabric (or watercolor paper) to create designs. Invented in the 1840's by Sir John Herschel, cyanotype started as…
Spotlight: Mildred and Sama of Suula
Suula started more than twelve years ago as a personal activity of creative expression. Today, it is a collaborative project in constant search for alternatives and processes with low environmental…
Spotlight: e bond, Visual Artist
Step into the vibrant, idea-filled world of e bond, a multidisciplinary artist who blurs the lines between life, art, and creativity. Her work is driven by curiosity, process, and the…
Spotlight: Kristine Berg, Fiber and Costume Artist
Kristine Berg became a crafts artisan, which led her to a career of travel and living around the world to create costumes and props for movies, theatre, and film. Now,…
Spotlight: Kirsten Miller, Natural Dyer and Sewist
Kirsten Miller has been a maker and crafter since she was a young child. She grows or forages for plant material to use for natural dyes, then transforms the fabrics…
Spotlight: Ann Johnston, Textile Artist
Ann Johnston began exploring dyeing fabric from a need for fabric in specific colors. She continues to challenge herself to create new textures and patterns for original fiber art. How…
Spotlight: Susan Callahan, Textile Artist
Susan Callahan combines her experiences and passion for food while working in a commercial kitchen, with her love of working with textiles to create her art. Fiber art and food.…