Hand embroidery by Martha Fieber

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Deep in a Birch Wood. Hand embroidery by American artist of applied art Martha Fieber

Hand embroidery by Martha Fieber at first glance may look like an oil painting. But if you come closer, you will see the thin stitches of detailed embroidery. Sitting in her living room Martha Fieber turns strands of ribbons and threads into a forest scene. She uses the lake and forest outside their Schoolcraft County home for inspiration in her artwork. American self-taught artist of applied art and former engineer Martha Fieber creates fiber landscape art that she sells at art shows and galleries for her business, Landscape in Thread. Her husband Leonard constructs unique pieces of furniture made from wood cut by beavers for his business Beawer Chew Furniture. Their artwork evolved out of a need to make a living after leaving their job in 1999 in Wisconsin and returning to the Upper Peninsula to be near Martha’s family.

Aster closeup. Hand embroidery by American artist of applied art Martha Fieber

Each work is original, one-of-a-kind, hand embroidered fine art landscapes. Martha can only make about 20 pieces a year. A small one can take over a week to make. She uses traditional hand embroidery techniques and applies them in a new way to create incredibly detailed and layered images of the beautiful world around us.

Aster. Hand embroidery by American artist of applied art Martha Fieber

“My art is about texture, technique, pattern, and detail. Each work includes layers and layers of hand stitching to create shading and depth. Martha Fieber uses all kinds of threads, fibers, and colors to create depth and texture in her work. Single strand silk, rayon, metallic, and/or hand dyed cotton threads, on linen and silk backgrounds comprise most of her current work. I use only 4 types of stitch, straight stitch, French knots, couching, and chain stitch, to achieve the incredible depth and perspective you see in my work”.

Cloud Bank closeup. Hand embroidery by American artist of applied art Martha Fieber

An accomplished artist, Fieber has exhibited her works at shows across Michigan and Wisconsin, as well as at the American Craft Exposition in Evanston, Illinois, the Philadelphia Museum of Art craft Show, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and the Westchester Craft Show in Westchester, New York. In 2005 at the Smithsonian Craft Show in Washington, D.C., Fieber received the Silver Exhibitor’s Choice Award. Her Landscapes in Thread are available at Fine Line Designs Gallery in Ephriam, Wisconsin.