“I don’t need what I’m making. I just need to make it.” An Interview with Artist Mary Ray

For Mary Ray, making has always been a process of learning. From sewing as a child to working as an editor, teacher, and fiber artist, her creative life has developed through decades of experimenting with materials, learning from others, and simply continuing to make.

Although Mary began sewing around the age of eight, she did not initially see herself as an artist. Her degree was in speech therapy, and sewing was something she loved rather than a career she planned to pursue. That began to change after she enrolled in design and textile classes at a community college outside Chicago. There, assignments in weaving, batik, color, and design introduced her to fiber art and changed the way she understood her own creativity. For the first time, Mary realized that being an artist did not have to mean being able to draw or paint. Fabric could be her medium.

That realization helped lead Mary through a varied career in textiles. She managed and bought fabric for an independent fabric store, operated a custom sewing business specializing in bridal wear, and eventually became an editor at Threads magazine. Despite lacking the editorial experience listed in the job description, Mary applied anyway, convinced she could learn that part of the work. Her years at Threads gave her the opportunity to learn directly from accomplished makers while sharpening her own skills. As Mary puts it, “I sew pretty well because I sew.”

That philosophy followed her into thirteen years of teaching at Appalachian State University, where she taught apparel construction and patternmaking and developed a course focused on sustainability. Her students learned not only how garments were constructed, but also how to mend, reuse, and better understand the materials around them.

Mary continues to carry that spirit of experimentation into her own work. Her recent wearable art piece, Ragtime Dance, began with a partially finished project sitting in a basket in her studio. Inspired by a Handweavers Guild of America exhibition call, she transformed the abandoned piece using scraps, stitching, and a technique she calls “scrap lace.” What began as an opportunity to use something she already had become a chance to play, experiment, and challenge herself.

After a lifetime of working with textiles, Mary’s advice to other makers is refreshingly simple: keep doing it. Learn your materials, allow yourself to make mistakes, and do not let perfection keep you from creating. Sometimes the fabric will cooperate, and sometimes it will have ideas of its own.



Most importantly, the value does not always lie in needing the finished object. As Mary says, “I don’t need what I’m making. I just need to make it.”