Elizabeth Starčević. The Cocktail Party, 2003.The Fort Washington Branch will be participating in the Uptown Arts Stroll as a venue for work by local artists. One of the artists displaying her work is long-time Fort Washington patron Elizabeth Starčević. We asked her a few questions about her work and about being an artist uptown.

When did you start weaving?

I learned to weave on a sabbatical in Mexico in 1992.

What is the source of your inspiration?

My work is inspired by life around me. I have a 4 piece series on war and peace when we went to war in Iraq. There is a piece called Darwin's Garden which was inspired by a show on Charles Darwin and evolution that took place at the Bronx Botanic Garden.

I have pieces that reflect my travels—The Map of Australia in the Ocean, Tulip Fields of Holland, I have a piece called The Air My Mother Left Me which references the fact that my mother was a very heavy smoker. I am inspired by color, by design, by other artists' work as in my work Homage to Sol LeWitt or my Homage to Gee's Bend Quilts.

What is the story behind Cocktail Party, on display at the Fort Washington Library for the Art Stroll?

Cocktail Party was a piece that took several months to weave and as it was rolling up on the loom and I could no longer see the beginning, I began to wonder how to end it. When it was finished, it seemed like a room of people standing around in bright party clothes, talking, drinking and having a good time.

Any advice for young or new artists in this community?

I have found support from the Northern Manhattan Arts Association and Artists Unite. Through them I have met many interesting artists. The neighborhood needs a place with studios so that folks can come and do their work where other artists are also working. This provides the opportunity for a rich artistic interchange. Artists need space to work, and spaces to show their art and opportunities to talk to each other. I hope that people will "stroll" into many places in our neighborhood and enjoy the art. I hope that folks will look at my website and tell me if they like what they see: estarweaver.com.

Stop by the Fort Washington Branch to check out Cocktail Party and other works by local artists.