As a storyteller, Patricia Kennedy-Zafred creates thought provoking narratives using fabric, dyes, silkscreens, and ink to develop a visual dialogue with the viewer. The interpretation of each piece is conceived through the lens of individual experiences, memories, or perspectives. Her quilts marry a lifelong fascination with photography, history, and stitch, often reflecting faces of pride and dignity, sometimes under challenging circumstances. The intent is that the technical and physical demand creating them is lost on the audience, as they focus entirely on the nuance or intrigue of the story, transported to another time or place. Educated in journalism and photography, the making of art has been a prolonged exercise in trial and error, self-teaching and study. The stories expressed, whether historical or personal, reflect upon our diverse American fabric, possibly reminding the viewer of someone or something they may have forgotten, compelling them to linger, just a moment longer.

Patricia Kennedy-Zafred has been telling stories through the medium of textiles and art quilts for over twenty years. Her prize winning work has been exhibited nationally and internationally, and has been published in books and magazines throughout her career, most recently Art Quilts Unfolding (Schiffer Publishing, 2018).

Kennedy-Zafred’s work has been widely exhibited in Pittsburgh art venues, as well as major national and international exhibitions, including Fiberart International, CraftForms, Art of the State Pennsylvania, Excellence in Fibers, Quilt National, Visions, Artist as Quiltmaker, Fantastic Fibers, Quilts=Art=Quilts, Fiber Options, New Legacies, National Fiber Directions, and numerous invitational exhibitions and publications. Her work has traveled across the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe, China, and Australia, and has won top awards at both International Quilt Festival and American Quilt Society competitions. Kennedy-Zafred’s art is part of the permanent collection of the State Museum of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg, PA, and The Textile Museum, Washington, DC, as well as multiple private collections.