Marie Pickering's Exhibition

The Enchanting World of Needle Felting by Marie Pickering - Needle Felt Artist I learned how to needle felt 2 years ago, and so began my journey into the world of delicate unspun pure New Zealand wool. Its wonderful rainbow colours appealed to my magical imagination. My scenes allow for the viewer to step in, for themselves, and express those intangible things like moods and feelings. I work by building up the landscapes by applying the wool in thin layers - this way I can create depth & perspective. All my handcrafted figures and pictures are my own design, and I like the enchanted world of forest folk, fairies, angels, etc. I live in a rural village in Central Hawkes Bay. My innermost wish is to "warm peoples' hearts, and ignite in them a stirring of their spirit". The fine art of Needle Felting involves working with tufts of carded wool, using special barbed felting needles. These needles were developed to be used by the woollen mills to create felt. The process of needle felting involves poking & pressing the wool to cause matting or felting. So it is a dry method of felting. My designs for this exhibition show the viewer the range of creative possibilities using Natural Sheep's Wool. My work appeals to children and their vivid imaginations. Marie Pickering