Mt. Pleasant artist explores embroidery as therapy

MT. PLEASANT — Jean Caboth has been doing embroidery ever since her mother taught her the art at the prime age of 10. For over 50 years, Caboth has been using that skill to detail and create art for others to enjoy.

The longtime art teacher and artist has used embroidery in quite a bit of her art. From normal stitchery to incorporating it into soft sculptures in the 1970s and 1980s to incorporating printing designs into her pieces.

“I enjoy working with fabrics and threads. My mom taught me to embroider when I was about 10. In the 1970s and ‘80s I used that skill to make pop art soft sculptures,” Cabot said.

In 2010, she took a class at the University of Minnesota that detailed how to print on a piece of fabric using colograph or stamp printing and then to embroider over that to add detail.

“In 2010, I returned to the embroidery to detail prints made on fabric. Since that time I have made art pieces starting with fabric paints and ending with embroidery floss,” Caboth said.

Her most recent art depicts scenes of nature and wild animals with no people making an appearance in her work.

Caboth enjoys using art to relax and to create. She finds the process almost therapeutic.

“I was an art teacher for 40 years, so I just like making this with my hands, and it’s just a way of expressing yourself and relaxing,” she said.

The free display can be viewed any hours the public library is open. It will be available through the end of the Old Threshers Reunion on Labor Day.

The exhibit is sponsored by Mt. Pleasant Arts IMPACT and supported by the Enhance Henry County Community Foundation and the William M. and Donna J. Hoaglin Foundation.