Today we’d like to introduce you to Renee Fleuranges-Valdes.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
My journey to becoming an artist wasn’t a straight line. For more than three decades, I built a career at IBM, beginning in operations and moving into systems and sales. It was a rewarding career, but creativity was always a part of who I was, even before I fully understood the role it would eventually play in my life.
After retiring and relocating to South Carolina in 2019, I found myself entering a new chapter. Fiber art, which had been a creative outlet, became something much bigger. I realized how fabric, color, texture, and intricate machine quilting were telling stories that my words alone sometimes just couldn’t. My work had become a way to explore identity, culture, joy, resilience, and the experiences that shape us as women.
Over time, that exploration grew into an international art practice, exhibitions, speaking opportunities, and my book, Becoming the Light: A Journey of Self Discovery Through Fiber Art. The book brings together 40 original fiber-art pieces, each accompanied by the personal stories and experiences that inspired it.
Looking back, I don’t see my corporate career and my artistic life as two separate stories. Each chapter helped shape the woman and artist I am today. My business development background taught me how to build relationships and recognize opportunities, while my art gave me a way to share more of myself with the world.
Today, through Quilted Artistry by Renée, my goal is to create art that allows people to feel seen and valued, so they can walk in confidence. I’ve learned that it is never too late to embrace a new direction, redefine what success looks like, or give yourself permission to become more fully who you are. Sometimes, the most meaningful chapter of your life begins when you finally give yourself permission to write it.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
No, it hasn’t been a smooth road. One of my biggest challenges has been finding my audience—not simply people who appreciate my art, but the collectors who connect deeply enough with it to want to live with it and make it part of their own stories.
I’ve been fortunate to have my work acquired by museums and exhibited in galleries, experiences that affirm the significance of what I create. Yet I’ve discovered that recognition within the art world and reaching a broader base of individual collectors are two very different things. Building that bridge has been one of my greatest challenges. I know there are people out there who will connect with my work; the challenge is finding them, helping them discover what I do, and creating opportunities for those connections to happen beyond my existing network.
As an artist working in fiber, one of my challenges is helping people see beyond the materials and recognize the work as fine art. Too often, fiber art is automatically categorized as quilting or craft, rather than being considered alongside other fine-art mediums. My work is not folk art, nor is it simply about fabric and stitching. It explores identity, culture, joy, resilience, and the experiences that make us who we are. My medium just happens to be fabric instead of paint. Changing those perceptions is one challenge; reaching the collectors who connect with the stories and want to bring that art into their lives is another.
I’ve had to learn that creating meaningful work and building a sustainable art business require two different skill sets. I’m continuing to learn how to bring those two things together. It’s a work in progress, but I’m committed to the journey because I believe in what I create and in the connections my art can make possible.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am a representational fiber artist working under the name Quilted Artistry by Renée. I use fabric, color, texture, and intricate machine quilting to create original works of art that explore identity, culture, joy, resilience, and the experiences that shape our lives. My work is vibrant and layered, both visually and emotionally, inviting viewers to look beyond what they see on the surface and connect with the story beneath it.
I am particularly known for the precision and level of detail in my work, as well as my use of color and movement to draw the viewer’s eye into a piece. I want the eye to travel, discover something unexpected, and find new details with each viewing. Every fabric choice, color, and stitch is intentional. I don’t simply use quilting to assemble a piece; intricate machine quilting is an integral part of my artistic expression. My medium happens to be fabric rather than paint, but my intention is the same as that of any artist: to communicate something meaningful and create an emotional connection with the viewer.
Much of my work centers on women, our identities, our strength, our joy, and the ways we navigate the world. I am interested in the stories we carry, the experiences that shape us, and the moments when we recognize something of ourselves in another person’s experience. I want viewers to engage with my work on their own terms, whether they are drawn in by the visual details, the subject matter, or the deeper story behind a piece.
One of my proudest accomplishments has been seeing my work move beyond my studio into museum collections and gallery exhibitions, including opportunities to share my perspective with audiences internationally. Publishing Becoming the Light: A Journey of Self Discovery Through Fiber Art, featuring 40 original works and the personal stories behind them, has been another significant milestone. It brought together my art and the experiences that inspired it, offering readers a deeper understanding of the stories behind the stitches.
Ultimately, I am proud to have developed a distinctive artistic voice and a body of work that reflects my perspective and experiences. I want my art to spark curiosity, invite conversation, and encourage people to look more closely—not only at the work itself, but also at the stories, identities, and shared experiences that connect us.
What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?
The most important lesson I’ve learned is that I have to give myself permission to become who I am meant to be, even when that means stepping outside what is familiar or what others expect of me.
For much of my professional life, success had a fairly recognizable structure. You set goals, worked hard, developed your skills, and advanced in your career. But building a life as an artist has taught me that growth doesn’t always follow a predictable path, and external validation cannot be the sole measure of whether you are moving in the right direction.
I’ve learned to trust my own vision, to recognize the value of what I bring to the world, and to keep moving forward even when the path isn’t clear. That doesn’t mean I never have doubts or that I don’t value feedback. It means I no longer allow uncertainty or someone else’s perception of what is possible to determine what I pursue.
Perhaps most importantly, I’ve learned that reinvention isn’t about becoming someone different. It’s about having the courage to uncover and embrace the parts of yourself you’ve kept hidden—even from yourself. Sometimes those parts remain hidden because we’re not ready to face them. Sometimes fear convinces us that it’s safer to wear a mask than to let the world see who we really are. Growth happens when we begin to release those fears and allow ourselves to show up more fully and authentically.
At this stage of my life, I understand that I don’t have to wait for permission, perfect timing, or someone else’s confirmation to pursue what matters to me. I am allowed to choose myself, to keep growing, and to create a life that reflects who I am today. That lesson continues to shape both my art and the way I move through the world.
I often say that fiber art helped me find my voice and Becoming the Light is how I share my voice more widely with others.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.quiltedartistrybyrenee.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/quiltedartistry/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/reneefleurangesvaldes
