Featured Artist
Christie Wilfong – Artist Feature Story
There are years of quilting in Christie Wilfong’s family. Her grandmother, Anna May, owned a quilt shop for over twenty-eight years which let to Christie’s interest in the craft. As a toddler she would visit the shop and listen to the jargon.
At age four Christie found out she had a brain tumor. Since she was so young, they used radiation to stop the growth. Her doctor suggested she do something with her hands so she began weaving at age seven.
During summers of her high school years, this artist studied dress design and was an assistant to an upholsterer. After graduation she became a secretary, but her passion for design haunted her.
Her life seemed rather normal as she began her college endeavors but a stroke at age twenty-one led to her leaving her classes. Apparently the extensive radiation for the tumor early in her life would now affect her future years.
She experienced two more strokes but was about to return home so her mother, Donna, could help in her recovery.
It was about this time that Anna May died and left the quilt shop to the family. As everyone pitched in to finish the jobs that were promised to clients, Christie collected the scraps of cloth that were left behind. She decided to retrain herself to sew since that talent disappeared after the first stroke.
The making of her first quilt was an interesting process. She machine-pieced her quilt tops (which is called “constructed fabric”). Then she got help hand quilting them. This then became the top layer. Padding came next with a backing of a solid color. She then hand-quilts these three layers together. Naming the quilt was the easy part. “Grandmother’s Quilt” was the start of her artistic career.
In 2004 a fourth stroke landed her in the hospital again with an extensive stay in rehabilitation. It was during one of her sessions, that she heard about the Fine Arts Program at the Center for Excellence in Disabilities. Using this group as a springboard, Christie had come a long way. She showed her work for the first time during a ROMPP (Real Opportunities Make People Productive) Show at the West Virginia University Evansdale campus in 2006
She now designs her quilts using a computer. This allows her to see how the colors will look together. Moving the “pieces” around is part of the artistic process. Her quilts are now “machine pieced and hand quilted.”
Christie has pursued another talent … watercolors. She loves feeling a brush, smelling the paint and thinking up different subjects to use. She can now scan one of her own watercolor paintings and incorporate it into a plan for an upcoming quilt.
She also has a love of words and is writing lyrics. A local band is working on possibly recording some of her music.
On June 26, 2008 she celebrated her twenty-ninth birthday and the start of yet another new endeavor.
She read a newspaper ad inviting local artists to show their work. Christie Wilfong is now a proud member of an artistic co-op in Weston, West Virginia. “The Gallery”, an arm of the Weston Arts Counsel, is a venture of sixty artists all living in our state. The grand opening was June 28th and currently about thirty artists have something on display. The variety includes photography, watercolor, oils and jewelry. The location is right in the middle of Main Street and the hours are noon to 6pm Thursday through Sunday. For more information call Kristin at the Weston City Building 304-269-6141.
The future is bright for this amazing artist. In addition to working at the co-op, Christie is preparing for the Health Sciences Show in October. Since it takes about three months to complete a double-bed sized quilt and an extra month for a queen size, she is extremely busy.
Helen Panzironi
Phone: (304) 293-4692
Fax: (304) 293-7294
Email: hpanzironi@hsc.wvu.edu
Fine Arts is a collaborative program with the West Virginia University College of Creative Arts (CAC) and the Center for Excellence in Disabilities (CED).
