Canberra’s Beth Miller attended her first quilting class in 1981. What started as a hobby became a passion and in 1997 she completed tertiary studies in commercial screen printing and fabric decoration. It was during that period that Beth started making quilts and printing, painting and dyeing many of the fabrics she uses.

An award winning and much exhibited quilter, Beth is also one of five artists of the tACTile group who have exhibited work throughout the world over the last five years. All the artists are individually acknowledged as leaders in the field of contemporary quilt making at local, national and international levels. Beth is famous for her ‘continuous curves’ technique.

Where does the painterly quality of your textile work come from?
My mother has painted for as many years as I can remember and my sister is an art teacher living in Townsville. At school I was put into a maths and science stream and not encouraged to do art at all. It wasn’t until I was an adult and enrolled in a design course at Canberra Institute of Technology that I had the time and the desire to develop my drawing skills. Learning about design and how to dye, print and decorate fabric was a huge learning curve and I have benefited from these techniques ever since. I still attend at least one workshop a year to try and improve my skills.  At the moment I am experimenting with various aspects of machine embroidery so that I can incorporate these techniques into my landscape quilts.

When did quilts become more than a hobby for you... something to be exhibited on an international scale?
I have always tried to exhibit my work in both Canberra and Sydney exhibitions of which I am a member. Dijanne Cevaal, a well-known Victorian art quilter, invited me to participate in a travelling exhibition called ‘Twisted - Interpretations of the Australian Landscape’. Each member made seven quilts and they travelled both here and overseas to wonderful reviews.  I realised I could enter my work into overseas exhibitions and since then I have had work exhibited in many countries.

What are the USA shows like and are there pros and cons of getting involved with them?
The first time I entered a quilt in the USA was in 2004 in the World Quilt competition. In 2006 I entered my Bogong Moth quilt which won first place in the Innovative quilt section. That was very exciting. I have also had quilts accepted every year since 2005 into the Hands All Around exhibition which premiers at the Houston Festival and then travels to various USA venues. Having my quilts exhibited overseas has exposed my work to a much wider audience. I have had many emails from people who have seen my work, which is very rewarding.

How did the teaching arm to your career develop and what are the loves and challenges of that work?
I have been teaching since 1991 and feel very lucky to have the opportunity to travel and meet so many wonderful people. It’s very rewarding to introduce ideas and techniques to students so that they can express themselves in a creative manner.

What ambitions do you still harbour?
I make quilts because I love what I do. I work to the philosophy that I make my quilts to please myself. If someone else likes it, it is a bonus. If they’re accepted into an exhibition, it is a double bonus. If it wins a prize, it is a triple bonus and, if someone likes it enough to buy it, whoopee let’s party! Some quilts have all the above and others just sections, however I’ve liked making them all.

Reading from your website it says that, coming from a hot area of Australia, you had never really sewn. What led you to that initial dressmaking class? Was it just practical reasons?
I grew up in Darwin and the heat and humidity was too high to sew, although my favourite aunt helped to make a dress while we were on holidays in Victoria one year. It wasn’t until our third child was born that I decided to learn how to sew so that I could make them some clothes. I remember making a lot of pyjamas and tops and graduating to tracksuits when we went to live in Alice Springs. I found the more I sewed the more I liked it. At that stage I only sewed clothes and items for the house - some turned out well and others were pretty bad.

Teacher profile:
Beth Miller

Her specialty:
Art quilting/creative curves

Where she teaches:
Australia and overseas

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