Kay Lewis (b. 1942, Los Angles, California) moved to New Mexico at age eighteen months. In 1882 Kay's great-grandfather became the first station agent in Española, New Mexico, where Kay's grandmother lived with the family in the Denver and Rio Grande station house, thus making Kaye a 4th generation New Mexican on her father's side. At age ten, Kay's sister, Janice, taught her to embroider, though Kay's first introduction to colcha embroidery occurred in 2000, when Kay and other docents-in-training received lessons from Mónica Sosaya-Halford at the Museum of Spanish Colonial Arts (MOSCA). Soon after this introduction, Beatrice Maestas Sandoval offered a class at Española Valley Fiber Arts Center (EVFAC), and Kay became "hooked on" the stitch. Kay quickly turned her focus to non-traditional use of the colcha embroidery stitch to create "wearable art."
Believing that Churro is "not a wearable wool in most cases," Kay embroiders shawls, scarves, and the occasional table runner using other wools, Alpaca, silk, and luxurious blends. She often purchases the ground cloth from artists at Spanish Market and the International Folk Art Market and also shops for background cloth on her travels. Kay's work is sold at EVFAC, the Museum Shop at MOSCA, a Canyon Road gallery, and various fiber arts shows. A distinguishing feature of Kay's work is that she does not apply patterns. Rather, she selects the ground cloth and yarn and then uses her needle "to discover what transpires." One can verify a Kay Lewis piece by the KL she always embroiders in one corner. Kay has lived in Santa Fe for thirty-three years and has five children, five grandchildren, and five great grandchildren. She retired as a professional tour guide who focused on the history, art, geology, and archaeology of northern New Mexico.
