Macrame: Painted with a String
Jolanta Surma, from Zlotow in Poland, is an artist and expert in artistic weaving. She has graduated from the Advertising College in Pila and University of Folk Crafts in Wola Sekowa; is a member of the Polish Association of Visual Artists, of the local Artists’ Association ‘AZYL’ in Pila since 1983, as well as the founder and President of Association of Visual Artists ‘Pasja’ in her hometown, Zlotow.
Jolanta currently works as a crafts instructor at the District Centre of After-School Clubs, where she has initiated multiple art projects and workshops for children, teenagers, as well as adults. Her main artistic focus is macrame technique and textile arts. Inspiration for her work comes from the nature: from plants, flowers, animals and landscapes. Her artworks astonish with originality and precision of knots. They are like paintings made with strings, full of the expression of colour, shapes and forms.
The artworks beautify and enrich the aesthetic experience of locations they are placed in. Jolanta’s macrames have won numerous awards and distinctions in national, as well as international arts and crafts competitions. Macrames have been exhibited all over Poland, as well as in London, Berlin and Sofia (Bulgaria). They decorate walls in the houses in Poland, Germany, France, Greece, USA, Australia and many more countries. They have also ‘played’ a part in a well-known movie ‘Dark Shadows’ with John Depp and Michelle Pfeiffer – Jolanta has created over 20 macrame movie props for those scenes. In 2013, Jolanta has celebrated a special jubilee – 30 years of her artistic work.
