Lions, tigers and bears, oh my! There’s also a frog, a monkey, a yeti, Bigfoot, a unicorn, a crow, an octopus, Yoda, a snail and a baboon. There are mythical creatures, fictional creatures and others that could be pets.
This is Melissa Nasby’s SoulFibre studio. These are her creations, soon to be packing their bags and headed for sunny California.
Nasby was first introduced to wool six years ago and started making masks one year ago.
Needle felting is a way of tangling the fibres of wool to make it denser and smaller. A barbed needle and her imagination bring the wool to life.
“Once you have the wool you realize how versatile it is and you can play with it in different ways,” said Nasby. “It’s only a matter of time before you try different ways of manipulating the wool.”
Nasby first pushed the boundaries of wool when preparing for Halloween. She thought October 31 would be the beginning and end of any kind of elaborate mask. She was wrong.
In the past year, her creations have travelled with her to the Vancouver Fibre Arts Show, The Great Canadian Craft Show and the Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo. In July, she will be a featured artist at Yarnival, a handmaker’s bazaar in California.
Nasby has attended Yarnival in previous years and organizers have watched her work evolve with interest.
“It’s a big deal to me, a really big deal. It’s an amazing compliment,” she says.
In November 2012 Nasby was unsure about showing her masks at the Vernon Fine Arts Show, not knowing if fibre art would fit in there. However, discoveries of her work at such shows have led her to theatre groups, film-makers and puppeteers – perfect matches for her creations.
She’s managed to present herself and her work to the right crowd, where the industries that can utilize her art are all linked.
“I’m surprised I found a market,” said Nasby. “That’s the struggle with art, to do what you love and actually find people who want it.”
Nasby is currently working on two productions with The Hub theatre in Vernon. She’s creating masks for the Wizard of Oz and bears for Goldilocks.
Within the last few months she began making puppets for puppeteer Cindy Bertrand. She’s also making an orangutan mascot for a Kelowna company.
Her realm of work is expanding as requests for custom work build up. She’s currently booked until August.
“For every artist, I think custom work kills you a little bit on the inside,” said Nasby. “I really only take on custom work where I am allowed the creative freedom.”
You wouldn’t guess it but Nasby can’t sew. As her pieces become more elaborate and need costumes, seamstress Alex Schon fills in the sewing gaps.
Nasby also enjoys a creative partnership with professional photographer Victoria Skofteby. Together they have embarked on creative projects with themes such as Snow White and the Huntsman.
Nasby says masks put a smile on people’s face. But more than anything, they put a smile on hers. She says the process is therapeutic.
“It really taps into something youthful, I think, like dress up and not taking life so seriously,” she said.
Nasby says she gets immense satisfaction from what she does and enjoys being part of larger productions. The sci-fi world is fascinating to her because of the characters the illustrators create, characters she can make in 3D forms . Animals are her favourite to create because wool mimics fur so well.
Her dream job would be designing for Cirque du Soleil.
“Even if it was just one pair of antlers, I would be so excited to be a part of that,” said Nasby.
SoulFibre products can be purchased on the website Etsy but Nasby sells most of her creations on Facebook.
From her Salmon Arm home studio, she posts all of her masks and puppets on her page, https://www.facebook.com/SoulFibre.
Nasby says establishing a retail shop is not likely in the near future because her products are so time- consuming to make and a majority are custom projects.
The artist says she has been very encouraged by the level of community support.
She’s a member of the Shuswap Spinners and Weavers Guild and recently participated in the Salmon Arm Quilt Show.
In November her work will be showcased at the Salmon Arm Spinners and Weavers Guild’s Annual Christmas Show at the SAGA Public Art Gallery.
