Tag: Other Artists

Art Quilt Thoughts

My website and blog both have Art Quilt terms in the title. I think about designs that are not block related and have made several quilts that do not use the block format. One of my favorites is What Comes Next, a quilt I made after I had a bit of time to think about September 11.

I have a couple of art quilt designs on the drawing board, but they have not yet reached their turn in line (noch nicht an der Reihe, as we say in German). Due to the busyness of life, I have been making block quilts and focusing on color for the past few years. This does not prevent me reveling in what other Art Quiltmakers are working on or developing my own designs for the future.

As part of this process, I read Quilting Arts and Cloth Paper Scissors magazines as well as other inspirational magazines, as I am sure many of you do. One of the things I noticed recently was how messy many art quilts are. I have a bias against messy, I will say up front. Collaging the box in September was exciting, but messy and I am sure I would have had some sort of medical emergency had I not swathed everything, including myself, in newspaper.

I don’t call myself an artist, because, like Wayne Thiebaud, I want to let history judge my work, but I do make art quilts.

HUH?

I make quilts that do not use a classic quiltmaking design (block pattern, e.g.). These are my art quilts.

I consider the above quilt to be an art quilt, but it is also not messy. It does not have threads hanging off of it or blobs of stuff piled on the quilt. I can appreciate the design choice that includes dangling threads or dots of paint placed carefully on a quilt. I think the key is that these have to be design choices to further the ‘story’ of the quilt and not have been placed there to make the quilt ‘arty.’

Cinda Cawley (who kindly gave me permission to post her unedited words here) wrote in a post to the AQSG list, which says a lot to make me think right now:

“I went to the Quilts=Art=Quilts exhibit at the Schweinfurth Center in
Auburn, NY. Call me a Philistine if you must (I’ll readily admit I don’t do
Art Quilts myself) but I was very disappointed. I try to get to Q=A=Q every
year and I always find several things that blow me away (confirmed
traditionalist that I am). Not this year! Do you ever go to a guild quilt
show and feel like all the exhibitors took the same workshops? That’s how I
felt (with a few exceptions) about these quilts. It seems as if all the
artists were told “Take tulle, or some other transparent material, paint or
dye it, cut it into squares or rectangles, arrange randomly on a
background.” I love to see the work produced by the members of the Art Bee
in my guild because even when they start from the same place they end up
going in very different directions.”

I have been wondering if making art quilts is a default for people? Do some people just start in on art quilts? If so, do they know anything about design? I think design matters in art quilts, but what do other people think? Does anyone care about design anymore?

I think the underlying principle for any type of quilt is design topped off by technique. If it is a bad design, then no amount of dangling threads or dots of paint will fix it.

Pink Chalk Pencils Rolls

I followed a link to Pink Chalk Studio’s blog and found these lovely pencil rolls. I would love to say I will run up and make one right away, but it probably isn’t going to happen. I love the way the stripes of color interact and will really have to think about that for inspiration. That lady is NOT me. See my profile for a pic of me.

You can still buy this pattern at Pink Chalk Studio.

Winter Houses

Since I can’t seem to think of anything of my own to write, I have been surfing looking at things for inspiration and to show you. PamDora’s Box is always great, but I saw these houses and immediately thought of winter. I am not sure why as there is no snow, but the dots in the sky remind me of snow flurries and the pale lavender might be snow in a sunrise. Enjoy!

Back to Visual Journalling

PamDora jolted me out of my visual journaling non-progress with her recent post and pointer to a book. I checked out my local library to see if they had it and, sadly, they don’t. I’ll have to see what my other options are for getting it without buying it and actually having to store it. Good idea, though. Perhaps PamDora will loan it!

Halloween Revisited + Some General Notes

I was browsing Deirdre’s Sloppy Studio when I came across the Sassy Art Goddess blog. I think of this as the best pumpkin I saw.

Other notes and tidbits:

Yarnstorm has some new and interesting links to other blogs. Pea Soup is quite good and I love the creativity of the names of people’s blogs. How about Lobster Squad? Kind of makes me wonder if Artquiltmaker is a misleading name since nothing that I am working on currently could remotely be called ‘arty.’ Her drawings remind me of what I would like my visual journal to look like. Oh, yes, visual journal. Got to get back to that….

I was asked when is the best time for me to write my blog and my other writing and I really can’t figure it out….yet. I often write in my journal in the morning and my blog at night – bookending the day with writing. But I also write more blog posts on the weekends and more journal entries during the week. Today I am writing in my blog in the morning and I definitely feel much more energetic about it. Of course, since I am not at home, I don’t have all of my tools, so the posts are more texty that full of pictures,perhaps skewing the impression? Let me know if you see a difference in the posts I write in the morning vs. the ones I write at night. I know you are rolling your eyes at my unreasonable demands, but just let me know if you notice! Otherwise just read on!

Artquiltmaker blog has not shown up in Technorati yet, per my Entering the Internet Age post. I will have to investigate. The blog is showing up on Google results, however, which, I guess, is good. I haven’t seen any additional traffic, but also don’t have a counter. More investigation required, I believe.

Have a great day!

Pools of Color

Yarnstorm has a gorgeous quilt on her blog, which renews my belief in simplicity and that I did the right thing with Thoughts on Dots. Her post talks about her pool quilt. Stop reading now! Right click (so you don’t leave my blog completely, thanks) and go read the post on her new quilt top.

Now that you are back and ooohing and aahing, I hope you enjoyed the quilt. First of all, the photograph that she has shared with us is wonderful. It has made me realize that, perhaps, you would be happy with ripples of color instead of the whole quilt perfectly centered with no extraneous info peeking in? Also, the way she talks about the colors and the quilt is like a poem. It reminds me of some writer who I have read recently, or whom I have read in the past and made an impression on me.

The quilt looks like it is made from all of those tightly, yet very soft cottons. I know that is not 100% the case as I have some of the fabrics. I don’t think any of them are loosely woven, though.

I also like the way she has used large scale prints. It seems like some of the flowers are fussy cut (notice the centers?).

I have been thinking about another quilt of squares only and I am inspired once again. We’ll see how it progresses.

I am out of town again. Back soon with photos.

Fun pincushion

I have been thinking that I would like a small project that I could churn out quickly and would have some use. The gift bags, you ask?? I know, I know. I should get to those. The fabrics in this one are bit boring for me, but can you imagine it in DOTS?!? What else? I am glad she posted the link to the directions. Easier to make….

May Britt from Norway has a tutorial of an awesome pincushion on her weblog! I love it so much that I had to give it a try 🙂 With this result !

Lucy

  blog it

Doing Time by Judy Martin

Judy Martin, a quiltmaker whose work I LOVE, sends out a periodic newsletter. She is finishing a book and sent out a newsletter, which had the article listed below. Since I have been attempting to engage in the process rather than the product of quiltmaking, I could very much relate to the article.

DOING TIME (Judy Martin’s Quilting Newsletter for September, 2007)
I read a lot of comments online and hear a lot of things that make me think there are a number of quilters for whom making quilts is a chore. Hear me out on this.

There’s a certain satisfaction that comes from finishing any task, whether it’s doing the laundry or a big project at work or making a quilt. There’s the satisfaction of knowing you completed something; the satisfaction of seeing the end result and being happy with it; and in some cases the satisfaction of getting something out of the way so you can get on to something else.

Lost in those varying sources of self-satisfaction is the satisfaction of the process. I enjoy making quilts, from the first spark of an idea to drafting the pattern to choosing fabrics to cutting the fabric to sewing the component parts back together again.
The process never fails to thrill me. I like making quilts. When I finish a quilt, there’s the thrill of seeing the end result, but there’s also a little bit of emptiness to go along with it. The only way to fill this void is to start another quilt.

I hear and read things all the time, however, that lead me to believe that for some people making a quilt is a chore, akin to cleaning the garage, only it takes longer. For them, finishing the quilt must be just another notch on the belt.

There are two things about that that bother me. The first is that if quilting is a chore, perhaps it’s time to find a new hobby. If you are not happy until you are done, if it’s only about how many quilts you can complete and not about how much you enjoy each quilt you make, then it might be time to move on.

The other thing that bothers me, and it’s a corollary to the first thing, is that when FINISHING a quilt is what drives you, then you’re going to look for patterns with chunkier and clunkier pieces. With less to cut out and less to sew, your quilt will be finished in less time. But it will also be less interesting to look at, and the satisfaction of having done it will not be as long-lasting. Or you’re going to look for smaller projects, like wall quilts, pillowcases, or table runners. (Don’t get me wrong: I make those things, too, but shouldn’t the motivation be that one wants and needs a wall quilt or table runner, not that one needs a project that can be finished
quickly?)

My recommendation is instead of judging yourself by how many quilts you make, consider how much you like each quilt you make and how much you enjoy making it. Enjoy the process; cherish the result.

Thinking Blogger Award

Kristen awarded me the Thinking blogger Award. While it has taken me awhile to post this on my blog and write about it, I was really glad. I don’t think I have ever really shared my writing in any meaningful way beyond letters to friends, essays at school and my thesis. Receiving Kristen’s Thinking Blogger Award made me feel like I had achieved something.

I started this blog, because:

  1. I needed to jumpstart my quiltmaking work after a long drought of time and ideas. I figured if I had an audience of regular readers, it would help me to keep at sewing and writing.
  2. It was a regular opportunity to write for a reason: I was gearing to up to write something longer and needed to “train.”
  3. I wanted to share what I was doing, including pictures, so that I could get feedback without joining a quilt group.
  4. I wanted to chronicle my progress.
  5. I wanted to explore one subject thoroughly.
  6. I like the concept of social networking and the technologies associated with it.
  7. I wanted to show that an ordinary person could also do extraordinary things sometimes.

I did not start this blog to:

  1. Blather on about my personal problems
  2. To talk about the entire universe of ideas and information.

Part of the Award is to make note of other blogs that inspire me or make me think. Here they are in no particular order:

  1. Yarnstorm creates a beautiful blog. The design of the blog itself is a work of art. Then I get the joy of looking at her photos and her projects and her color sense. It is fresh and well written. Her photographs celebrate the ordinary [work of women]. I especially like this post.
  2. Jan at Be*mused has a wonderful sense of design. Her photographs are little works of art. They really exemplify her sense of color. Her title looks like the Bewitched logo from a zillion years ago. An example of her fabulous color sense is in this post. I also like the photos she posts about projects that inspire her, which she follows up with examples of her interpretation.
  3. Red Shoe Rambling. I admire Deb’s perseverance in posting every day; she committed to doing it and she does it. She also has gorgeous photos. They are really different from Be*mused and Yarnstorm. I love the ones she posts of nature. I also appreciate her bravery in posting photos of when she was a kid!
  4. I really like Laume’s Studio, because she describes her projects and thoughts about them. Again, she posts wonderful photos. Laume looks at the world the way I do. She posts pictures of patterns that she sees in her daily life, such as this post about the photo of fence.
  5. I supposed I could have chosen more than 5, but in sticking with the rules, I decided to only choose 5. It was difficult, because there are a lot of bloggers I admire: Deirdre (love the tabs on her blog and she always reads my blog. Also, she is a master painter), High Fiber Content (Julie is fearless in trying new things. Her blog is also a great chronicle of all the various projects in her life), Fibermania (Melody Johnson is so consistent and cheerful in her posting), I chose Pamdora’s Box, because of her drawings and her sense of humor.

You can read Kristen’s post about my blog is here. You can find out about the Thinking Blogger Award in general here.

Project Progress


I now have 15 Cross Blocks (Flowering Snowball). I could have laid them out in a 3×5 grid, but it didn’t look that good.
MavMomMary and I took the Pineapple Quilt Class together back in January. She is already putting her quilt together. I haven’t seen it since she had only done a few blocks and was thrilled to see it today. I think it looks fantastic. And very different from mine.

And a detail.


Creative Journals

I have been feeling, for a long time, how I would like to work on a visual journal – painting, sketching, colored pencils…something. I am an inveterate journal keeper. I have been keeping a journal since about 1980. Perhaps earlier. I have scads of them everywhere. I used to put snippets of things in them and they would get quite fat and I would have to keep it in a big ziploc bag in order to ensure that the bits and pieces wouldn’t fall out. An old boyfriend spent the day reading my journals once and that was the end of him. Jerk. My journals are for my mental health and NOT for sharing. They are not nice, not always pretty, but they are a fantastic exercise.

Anyway, enough boring background.

Lately I have been writing bits and notes in my journal about Thr3fold journal in order to remind myself what I want to write in the review. Putting the notes in my journal keeps all the parts together. Today, I was reading an article in Cloth Paper Scissors. Jane Lafazio, Keeping Creative Sketchbooks, pg.24-27, March/April 2007 issue, writes a little lesson on drawing and the whole article is illustrated with pages from her notebooks. The images are fresh, alive, colorful drawings. They make me want to get closer, to know more. She also writes “The journaling makes my sketchbook more than a series of paintings; it becomes my illustrated personal story.” What a lovely thought. I love the thought of something being my personal story.

Darling Boy made a deal with me to draw every day. This is his picture. Of course it is about war, but I love the little alien in the upper right hand corner. I am tempted to enlarge it and paint it. Something about it appeals to me, perhaps the googly eyes.

Tonya showed a picture of one of her visual sketchbooks, so I have been reinspired all day to figure out how to do this.

And finally, I finished another Cross Block (Flowering Snowball). Two in one week! I am thrilled!

How do you like the fabric with the faces?

Be*Mused is Back

Jan over at Bemused Blog is posting about quilt blocks again. She has been working on selling her house and, thus, has been distracted. I am glad to see her post the basket blocks.

Be*Mused really has a way with color. I love what she did with the baskets. I tried to analyze what appealed to me about these blocks. I think the thing is the neutrals she added to the blocks: the various greens and the gray-green. I also think the colors, even the gray-green, are pretty clear.

I am especially enamoured of that dotty red. I wonder if I have it? St. JCN?

San Mateo County Fair 2007

We spent the day at the San Mateo County Fair yesterday. The Fair, in general, seems to get smaller and smaller every year, but they still had a great selection of quilts and other needlearts. I wish more people would take the time to enter one thing.

I attend county fairs for many reasons. I really enjoy it being a coming together of things that people in the county make/participate in. We spent quite a bit of time looking at the bee hive and talking to a beekeeper. The cut flowers and plants were also amazing. My two favorite things are the quilts and frozen bananas. I thought the frozen bananas had gone the way of the dinosaurs after I checked every food vendor and none had them. I finally found them hidden in the ‘international’ area. I never knew milkshakes and frozen bananas were considered foreign food. Oh well, you learn something new every day!


As you may remember, I entered Thoughts on Dots into the fair. It didn’t get a prize, but I was pleased with how it was displayed. I was happy that there were no Sunbonnet Sue stuffed dolls in front of it and it wasn’t folded over anything. You can really see the whole quilt.
I was also REALLY pleased with how flat it hangs (no ripples!) and how well the sleeve looks. No lumps!


While I like, what St. JCN calls, the San Mateo Dotty better, this quilt reminds me of it. I know they are very different, but there is something about it that brought the SMD to mind.

This is a close up and I really like the flower motifs for the quilting.
These were fun! They are crocheted cupcakes.
Detail shots. Do you like the “sprinkles?”
This quilt was tied and didn’t hang very well, but I loved the tree in the middle. That drawing was very well done.

Detail of the tree.

The complete group of photos, unaltered and BIG are here as well as few other needlearts items that struck my fancy.