There’s a reason why Lisa Sarjeant comes alive when talking about fabric: she knows it intimately, having worked with fabric as an artist for two decades. The talk radio personality, whose hand-painted scarves were presented to the world leaders and their spouses as gifts for the Fifth Summit of the Americas in Port-of-Spain two years ago, Sarjeant still gets a rush when she starts working on a design after all these years. “I don’t think I can put into words the excitement I get when I get new fabric. “I love seeing what happens when dye is upon fabric and what I can do with it. That brings a huge rush to me,” she said. “I’m always trying something new with fabric. I get these ‘ah ha’ moments and I think, okay, great, let me try this. I try to mix colours in a way I’ve never done before. God knows I must have combined every colour there is possible.”
Hard to believe that there was a time when Sarjeant’s zeal for her craft was put on a shelf due to some crushing life changes. The death of her son during birth, a failed marriage and the feeling of being smothered in jobs all contributed to her withdrawal from her craft. Slowly she started back painting, only to realise that it was helping with her healing. Sarjeant thought the timing was perfect to formally make a return when noted fashion designer Meiling phoned her to find out if she still did fabric painting. Meiling, she said, was surprised to find out that she was creating but that she was also hoarding her pieces. Meiling took the finished work and incorporated it into her design, much to Sarjeant’s delight. “I’m always amazed to see what she does with it. Many times I would do a piece of fabric and I’m clueless as to the plan. When she (Meiling) has her show and I see it on the runway, I’m in awe. She’d put together two pieces of fabric that I probably would have never thought of putting together.”
Sarjeant values their arrangement: Meiling never dictates to her; rather, she just embraces her work.
“I get my credibility where my fabric is concerned. I haven’t worked with another designer, quite deliberately. I enjoy our work relationship. That is very important in your creativity. “I’m not good with people telling me what to do in any aspect in life,” Sarjeant confessed, laughing. With the seeming resurgence of a well-constituted local fashion industry and with suitcase traders in full bloom, Sarjeant can’t help but feel “special.” “People have to actually appreciate what I do to come to me because they can go to a store in the mall and just buy what’s on the rack. “It always feels good when I go out and see someone wearing my fabric. My work is not in vain and it’s not just me who like it.”
She’s grateful for the knowledge obtained during her secondary and tertiary education days at St Francois Girls’ College and John Donaldson Technical Institute, respectively. She also sang the praises of her teachers Mary Gill, Althea Bastien and Greer Jones for imparting their knowledge to her. Sarjeant, who used to watch her father paint as a child, is seeing another generation of painters on the horizon. Her daughter Amaya, just as she used to years before her, often mimics her as she paints.“I never, for a second, doubted that I could make it as an artist. I’m not afraid to be passionate about what I do. Sometimes, I’m overly passionate. We don’t know how long we have on this earth, so I will dictate my path. If I can make someone smile, then I smile. Then I’m on the right path.”
