Artist Profile: Kate Ford

Artist Kate Ford of Pink Bunny Batiks shares her delightful designs and talks about her process.

ABI:  How did you get started making wearable art?

KF:  Pink Bunny Batiks began when my 8 yr old son asked me to make him a t shirt with his lizard on it. He wore it to school, and all the other third graders wanted their own shirt, and the orders started pouring in. The other moms noticed the scarf I made, and they placed orders for those. The next summer I started to sell at art fairs and online. Pink Bunny Batiks was born.

ABI:  Tell us about the process of making batiks.

KF:  The process of batik is an ancient one. The use of beeswax as a resist and dyes for colors was used as far back as ancient Egypt, used on mummies. Hot wax is applied to the article on areas to remain white. Then the article is dyed in the next lightest shade.

Then wax is applied to the areas to remain that color. Next is another dye bath in a darker color, then wax, then more dye. The process continues and ends with the darkest color, usually black or brown. The wax is removed by boiling.

ABI:  Why did you start doing your 2D artwork?

KF:  I began doing my 2D artwork last year, to fulfill my personal artistic calling. The artwork gives me more artistic license. I can portray subjects in 2D that are not conducive to wearables. This enabled me to begin showing in galleries, which has always been one of my goals.

ABI:  Where do you see your business going in the future?

KF:  I see my business branching out into larger audiences/clients. I would like to be able to sell my wearables wholesale and add more boutiques to my list of clients. Also, I would like to expand my 2D artworks  and  include the  images on mugs, notecards, and other giftables.