Mary Jo Miller has always enjoyed viewing and creating color relationships that were intriguing and pleasing to the eye. As a child, it was woven cotton hot pads or melted crayon between wax paper. As a teenager, it became wax batiks and mixed media pieces satisfied this craving for color. Her pursuit of a fine arts degree allowed her to experiment with these color relationships through various mediums including intaglio, silk screening, drawing, fiber sculptures, painting and papermaking.

Mary Jo received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire where she studied printmaking and drawing. During her studies, she was a participant in an art history study abroad program in Florence, Italy. She continued with a Masters of Fine Arts in Printmaking from Washington University in St. Louis. While at Wash U. she was a master printer’s assistant creating works for Roy Lichtenstein, Sam Gilliam and Carolyn Brady. After graduate school, Mary Jo taught fundamental design courses for the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, while she continued to exhibit her prints and fiber sculptures through national shows and galleries.

Her love of material and color next took Mary Jo into the world of architecture and interior design where she worked as a color material specialist, first for HOK in St. Louis for two years and then VOA in Chicago for three years where she also commissioned art pieces for specific clients. She then pursued an opportunity with Interface Flooring as a Creative Consultant where she developed custom color work for large projects across the country.

In 1989, Mary Jo switched gears, moved to Hickory North Carolina and jumped at the opportunity to help build the HBF Textiles brand and work in one of her favorite mediums…fiber. During her tenure with HBF Textiles, Mary Jo has directed the development of a number of award winning collections with artists and designers within the interior design and architecture profession. In addition, she initiates her own collections where Mary Jo experiments with color through the manipulation of yarn, surface structure and density of weaves.

Mary Jo is currently on the board of directors for the Association of Contract Textiles (ACT) and has been active on advisory boards for the interior design programs at Virginia Tech and University of North Carolina, Greensboro. Mary Jo is married and has two colorful teenage daughters.