Art Quilts, fabric collage

Sitting outside after a fierce thunderstorm made we wonder, how do animals and in particular birds, survive such a storm? I know not all do but as I hear them chirping in the trees I wonder if they just hang on for dear life. Hunkering down in the hollow of a tree hoping for the violence of nature to end.

Making art can be blissful or stormy at times. To commit to start a new idea can make you anxious, a little stormy but that comes with the process. You need to push through this and just start. I have to admit when I am quiet inside, no worries or distractions is when I am most creative. However sometimes the circumstances of the day are loud and stormy. I usually avoid anything creative when this happens because I feel like that bird in the thunderstorm, hanging on to dear life not knowing what is coming next. 

Usually I try to distract myself from these worries by looking at art or researching techniques. You never know what you may see from looking again at a master painting or sculpture. You may find beauty in the pattern of a manhole cover, the texture of tree bark or by exploring someone’s art. I was on a trip in late April flying out of Philadelphia International airport when I came across this amazing felt art. 

 

  

It has become the “new” thing to put art in airports. Often it is a good way for a city to promote the artists of their city to a captured audience, airport passengers. Seeing that these passengers are from a wide variety of society the art is exposed to a lot more than the normal art scene. 

This art by Heidi Bleacher is so colorful and inventive. The scale of making small things big really works. The playfulness of the bears, one on top of the other is engaging. I was caught in the awe from a 6 year old boy telling his mom that the teddy bears were having fun playing. I truly enjoyed the mushrooms reminding me of the dancing mushrooms from Disney’s Fantasia. I can just see them spinning and spinning to classical music. 

The last display includes bright ladybugs, always fun with their bright red against the grey fence and yellow sunflowers. This artist hit it out of the park and has helped me to stop just thinking about my art. I am ready to get busy with my artistic soul replenished. Can you guess my next project? 

Dwell on the beauty of life. Watch the stars, and see yourself running with them. Marcus Aurelius.

I have just come home from a short visit with family out of state. Our visit cemented the fact that my love of nature came from both my mom and dad. We canoed, back packed, swam in the ocean and camped most summers. This emersion in nature instilled a sense of beauty of that nature. Another sense, just something imbedded in my sub-conscious that I am able to draw upon to express in my art.  A wealth of subjects make this an easy style but as I have said before the depth of this subject makes this well of ideas very deep.

One of those family camping trips took my family on a hiking trip on the Appalachian trail in North Carolina. My parents with my five siblings backpacked and hiked for two weeks for a total of fifty five miles. Oh boy they were silly or courageous but we did have fun. I believe the oldest was thirteen and the youngest three or four. I myself would have been five caring the most important thing in my knapsack, toilet paper and toothpaste.

My dad had taught us if we ever felt like we would fall while hiking to lean back and fall on your butt.  As we were heading down a steep hill my youngest sister kept sitting down. She was small enough not to have anything to carry so it was puzzling why she was doing this.  Seems the bushes along the trail were wild blueberries and she was eating these along the way. I can still see her blue stained hands and lips from that day. I know family memories are strong for everyone but this one shows how we were allowed just to play in nature. Thank you mom and dad.

Today I want to share the beauty I see in my daily walks and travels. As my quote for the day says I do this to dwell on the beauty of life, nature and seeing that beauty in nature is life to me. I have no idea if I will ever use any of these photos in actual art work but it is my visual context. This context becomes my springboard. Yes I too can see myself running down that hillside and stopping to eat a few blueberries along the way.

 

 

There is always a struggle to find the time to get art work done. When I worked 9 to 5 I waited until I was inspired and had the energy. Life, being a wife, mother along with work, it was hard to juggle my need to create. I do not regret any moment of this struggle though. It gave me time to explore ideas, methods and techniques to fit what I had in mind. To develop my style and find the best way to express this style. This occurred to me recently when someone asked how I came about using fabric and stitch in my art. 

Now that I am no longer in the 9 to 5 grind I am free to use my day as I please. This is freeing but also can become a crutch to not do much all day long. I have talked about habits, things done on a regular schedule makes things happen. It also makes one nervous to think that you may run out of ideas. This last week I have done a bit of reading but no new art. Then I read this quote “You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have” Maya Angelo. 

Guess I need to stop waiting for the muse to hit me and just get into the habit of making art. I do have many ideas so I need to just get to it. I have progressed with each new piece. Will that continue? Will I run out of ideas? A couple of years ago I challenged myself to one new piece of art a month. I accomplished this while still working and it pushed my art further than I expected. 

So I will face those questions and take that same challenge one step further. Starting in June I will do 2 new pieces each month. Seeing this in writing to the world makes it real and a bit scary but I will do my best because I do believe there is no way to use up my creativity. 

Sometimes fun and work can be combined too. This last Saturday I met up with my crazy quilt group. We exchanged pin cushions with each other. We all have stitched blocks for each other but this was the first pin cushions for the group. We pulled names from a hat and had a couple of months to complete it. 

Knowing who I was making it for allowed me to customize the color and stitching to what I knew she would like. I made mine bigger than most, starting with a 11 inch square that I ended up sinching around a 9 inch circle of heavy cardboard. Below is a picture of the block while still flat. 

On the bottom of this block is a pretty vine with green leaves are some pretty purple flowers made out of trim. When I pulled it up I almost lost the flowers due to the pleats around the edge. I would not put something so close to the edge next time. 

Here is a picture of the rest of the groups pin cushions along with mine. We are very lucky to have some very talented ladies in this group. 

So I can see that creating art can be work at times but even better when you get to do something fun at the same time. I may just have another pin cushion to work up now! 

Creativity is intelligence having fun. Einstein 

Does this ring true? I often wonder if my left brain intelligence has had any affect on my right brain creativity. It always seemed two divergent things. The logical, academic thought and knowledge was one thing. The creative, esthetic, fun side was not the same. Yet once I read this comment from Enstein it just clicked. 

They are the same, how could you even think of fun without the intelligence and knowledge that it has to be based on? Most artists research a subject, do sketches, check new techniques that apply to the subject and do studies. This is the logical, intelligent way to test a theory or hypothesis as in science.  

I never linked these together until I read this quote. I work out a lot of problems with my art in my head, thinking of color, movement and texture. This is the logical side of my creative side. Then there is the fun action of creation, the habit of doing that is ethereal. I loose track of time, forget whatever else is on my mind and am just creating. 

At times it doesn’t match exactly as I planned. This doesn’t bother me. I may be led to something I had not considered, happy “accidents” that may or may not be useable. Good thing about stitching you can always take it out, just like erasing a drawn line. This also can be frustrating, something I have talked about in the past. To make the vision I have in my head to come out in my art. Sometimes I succeed, sometimes I don’t. 

Take the progress on this crazy quilt block. I finished the blue turquoise vine on the bottom and really enjoy the contrast on the dusty purple. The circular movement really comes thru with the lazy dazy flowers on each stem. I decided I needed to bring the pink salmon on the left into play, thus the buttonhole stitch across the top of the turquoise silk. I have laid out some beads to top off each stitch that match the dusty purple exactly. I don’t want to obscure the fabric print on the left side so have pinned a line of organza trim on the seam. Not exactly sure if this will stay but will leave it for consideration. It is coming along but perhaps enough fun for today. 

Creativity is seeing what everyone else has seen and thinking what no one else has thought.  Einstein

This is so true but honestly I have gotten too serious in the last couple of posts. Thus I will say I met with a close group of friends last weekend for what we call crafty days. Two were working on traditional “saine”quilts, two including myself working on crazy quilts and the last working on Zentangles. 

We are a diverse group but know each other well enough to enjoy our sameness along with our differences. I have to say we talk about anything and everything. A lot of this time is shared in laughter too. Just what the doctor ordered to dust out the seriousness of life. 

I took an idea from a book that was shared from one of my cohorts to embroider a spider web that was further embellished with a vine and leaves. It is not an exact copy from the book, it is my interpretation of that idea. This is what I believe Enstien meant, that my creativity is seeing what everyone else sees but then thinking or showing what no one else has seen. 

I do believe this is natural to me but honestly most quilters do the same. In fact one of my buddies makes it a joke that she can’t seem to follow the rules in a pattern for a quilt. Yet her interpretation of that pattern is fabulous! 

Here is the crazy quilt block I worked on with the web and vine on the right. I do love how this color range is working with the center picture. I also wanted to share this mostly naked block and will share updates as I work on this block. 

“Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes, and having fun.”
Mary Lou Cook

When I saw this on another blog I wondered if this could be applied to life in general. How do we find a new way of doing something? Do we try new methods, read different books, take a different drive back home?

A good proof reader reads a page from the bottom paragraph up. This is simply because it forces the brain to see each paragraph separate from the whole so that the errors are easy to pick out.

This different way, different path forces your mind to see things that your mind has glossed over. I do this with my art by turning the picture upside down. The brain forces the viewer to see things that it did not before. So the glaring color red that is somehow bothering me as “wrong” can be changed with a splash of blue. Experimentation is the lifeblood of creativity. Yet prior experience also comes into play. Do I always need to make that purple? Is it okay to always use bright colors?

I know that risk taking and mistakes in art are a way to find new paths but I also want others to see my vision. To recognize my style, my brand. This is an on going issue with all artists. To keep your work “yours” but also make it fresh and new. A kind of push and pull challenge that keeps me going.

My usual pallet is bright and bold but as you can see from this crazy quilt block I do use subtle colors. I titled the completed quilt French Curves to go with the dusty rose and gray French Provincial color theme. These colors were challenging but also exciting, adding a change of pace but also breaking my own rules. The curves are from the sweeping movement of the pieces placed around the center photo.

Now compare it to this bold and bright block I did to represent the month of July last year. There are some of the same ideas of using color on top of each other. Using the bright blue ribbon on the left on top of the blue background. The blue stitches seem to shimmer on top of the background. Yet there is some of the same subtle use of color with the orange ribbon on the right that then reaches on top of the blue for contrast. As I write this I see that there is a continuous style, the use of light and color along with movement.

These are some of the things that run around inside my head as I am creating. I wonder do you have this too?

Spring has come to my neck of the woods with trees flowering and a strong gusty wind today. Makes me think of sweeping out the cobwebs lurking in the corners of my mind.  

Sweeping thoughts of new projects, new fabrics, new methods to use in my art. I am always looking for ways to express my art to others. Maybe the explorer in my soul, thanks dad. Yet I also wonder if always looking for something new is good. I want someone to look at my art and recognize it as mine.  However there is an excitement of trying something new that can recharge my creativity.  Even if I don’t use that new technique it recharges me, blows out the cobwebs and gets me going again. 

I joined some friends a couple of weeks ago to learn how to do Shibori dying of silk. This is a Japanese manual resist dyeing method that produces patterns on fabric usually by folding the fabric like an accordian. We tied the fabric to a tube, wrapped it with string, pushed it up the tube to make the folds, continuing until it was all wrapped. 

My silk was already dyed so I dipped my tube in a bleach like solution then went to town with a range of dyes on the now white areas. This was then sprayed with vinegar, heated in the microwave to set the colors and allowed to drip dry. Lastly it was pressed flat on a very high setting, pressing out all the pleats. Here is the finished project.   

I enjoyed learning this method but totally appreciate those that do this full time. 

I attended the opening of the show I am part of last night with awe and pride. The depth of work, the quality, the variety of artistic expression inspired me to no ends. It also confirmed the quality of my work is hitting the mark.  Seeing the fruits of my labor, of meeting that goal of quality fills my artistic soul. 

It feels like the brightness of a beautiful sunrise. I know that this is just the beginning. There will be days of solitude creating the next piece, that there will be days of thunderous rejection but today it is bright and sunny. 

It is all the more encouraging that the plan I had of creating art daily after retirement last year is coming to fruition. I believe that as I move forward in this path I am growing closer to my true calling in life. I have known since childhood that I was meant to create art. 

Family and other life responsibilities came into play before I could create art full time. I don’t regret these responsibilities. I had time to seek out styles and methods to express my true artist soul. It gave me time to practice that expression, to reach that level of craftsmanship that I expect of myself. 

So here I am in front of my art hanging in the show, Art at the Center.  It is at the Tomahawk Ridge Community center in Overkand Park, Ks. The show will be up from April 1 through June 12. 

  

If you are in the area come by and check it out along with the rest of the fabulous art in this show. 

Life is full of happy times, sad times and steps towards the goals that you want each and every day. As an artist I have always had an idea of what I wanted to accomplish. To have my work be recognized for the beauty that I see. To be represented in the art world for my own unique vision of what I see in the beauty of nature. I know I have written this before but it is the best way to describe my work.

I have been entering art shows for several years and while about 65% have turned me down I have had work accepted and sold through these events. As most artists say you can’t predict what a juror will like. Though they all try to be fair it is a subjective process. This can be frustrating if you try to over think the reason you got accepted for one show and not another. However as I get accepted in a show I know it is one more step towards my goal, my dream of sharing my artistic vision.

I have been accepted in a show in Overland Park, Kansas that will open April 1. I have set the art quilt in a matt and went on a shopping search for a frame. I frame my work just as you would a painting maybe because it affirms that the work is art. I also know that once my work is hung it has to be protected under glass. There is no feasible way this artwork could be dusted, thus the frame with glass. It always amazes me how just putting a frame around any art changes your perspective of that work.

I have posted this work before but here is quick shot of Lilac Spring with a matt, sitting on top of the thin black frame it will be set into.

One of the sites I found online is Art Opportunites Monthly which I started as a free trial. I check this often and found it has a depth of listings for artists. If you are interested check the info below. Please note I receive nothing in return just wanting to share the wealth of info that this site provides.

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Art Opportunities Monthly Professional (AOM) is offering a free, no-obligation 3-month subscription for those not yet familiar with it. It is for professional artists and protographers, and those who would like to be.

AOM, a monthly list of opportunities (grants, juried shows, public art commissions, etc.) with world-wide circulation, has been around for over 15 years. It screens out the scams and for-profit “contests” and presents each hand-selected, carefully edited opp in a quick-to-scan capsulized form. It is sent in a highly search-able, smartly organized PDF directly to your email address. No passwords to remember or lose.

To find out more and sign up, simply go to:

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Your email address and other information will be kept absolutely private. You do not have to enter your credit card number or anything other than your name and email address. No obligation, no gimmicks.

This offer is only for those who are not current subscribers. Expires May 16, 2016.

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