The Food Pyramid

June 28, 2007

Many of the quilt ideas that I’m working on lately revolve around food (surprise!) After seeing the King Tut exhibition in Philadelphia, I’ve had the Food Pyramid on my brain non-stop. I was inspired by paintings such as this one of Nefertari and of course, the old man himself. But what a surprise to find this Cleopatra VII! Does the one boob look familiar?

I’m not sure this design is quite there. I always wonder if what I’m doing is really funny, or maybe I’m just being silly again. But then again, maybe a snake and mummy dog aren’t enough. I could add a camel. And couple of Egyptian servants carrying a big hero sandwich…

After I drew the sand dune version, I was inspired by Nefertari playing chess to draw this one:

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A Happy Anniversary

June 26, 2007

I’ve been saying I wanted to learn to play the ukulele for a couple of months now, so guess what I got last night? Except it was wrapped upside-down and in a big vase, so I thought it was flowers. Isn’t my man clever and funny?

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Another Meeting

June 21, 2007

Recently I bought a book called the Tao of Sketching which has tips for using lots of different media. Or just using whatever is available if you are so inspired. I don’t know why I never thought of this before. Now I know what to do with all those papers that I get at meetings. Good thing I had my favorite pen.

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Masters of the Brush

June 14, 2007

While in Philadelphia, we visited the Philadelphia Art Museum — one of the largest in the country, and fun to visit, especially on Friday night — live jazz music, wine and hors d’oeuvres in the foyer. I was most moved by the exhibition of Ike Taiga and Tokuyama Gyokuran: Japanese Masters of the Brush. The large number of paintings on display was impressive and allowed me the opportunity to study the myriad of styles and expressions that this couple achieved through a lifetime of work using primarily black and gray inks.

I’ve always been excited by the thought of doing more with less, and you know my obsession with line! So when I got home, I was thrilled to find a Chinese Ink Painting class taught by a friend of mine. Hing Wah is a dedicated artist and energetic teacher. Here’s a peek into one of the suitcases full of brushes that she hauls around for students to use (the suitcases are bigger than she is!)

Although I’ve occasionally tried this kind of painting on my own, it was enlightening to have a real teacher and see the many different ways that Hing Wah used her hand and arm to achieve different strokes. Not to mention lessons on the differences in brushes and how to shape and fill them with inks. Check out Oriental Art Supply if you have a hankering to treat yourself to some of these beautiful brushes.

Hing Wah said she can tell from my quilts that I study Japanese art (I do) and she clued me into several artists to look for — one standout is the famous Chinese painter Qi Baishi who is loved for his spontaneity and unique style. Check out his painting Studying for a laugh. Who hasn’t done that?

I wasn’t too interested in doing flowers or bamboo, but fish! Here’s some fish I did, the lips on one got too fat, so I made him into a catfish.

It will take a long time, probably never, before I’m a master of the brush. But it’s fun and good way to focus on simplifying movement, expression, and composition, so maybe next week I’ll try some paintings on my own.

Filed Under drawings, other artists | 7 Comments

Finished Quilt

June 8, 2007

Finishing the quilt is pretty easy after quilting it. It only takes me about an hour and half to sew on the binding which acts like a thin frame around the image. This is called Late Date, and it’s 52″ by 80″. I’ll try to put it on my website soon, which I’ve been working on an updated version for over a month.

Funny how certain themes repeat themselves in my work. About twenty years ago, I did a picture story book that revolved around a group of pantyhose dancing a ballet in a grocery store, and they looked an awful lot like that pink pair laying under the ironing board. I guess pantyhose is just one of those things I love to hate!

Here’s a closeup of one of my favorite parts before I quilted it. You may not be able to tell but the water cut out of fancy floral fabric. I don’t often use flowery prints, but I just love the idea of turning on the tap and having flowers stream out.

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Quilting a Big One, part 2

June 6, 2007

After I do a lot of my detail work on my small Bernina machine, I pin the quilt onto an Inspira frame and use a bigger Viking machine for the backgrounds. It’s not a long-arm. It’s only a couple of inches longer than my Bernina, but it’s a lot faster so when I go back to the Bernina, I tend to break needles because I’m in the habit of moving fast. When I first got this Viking machine last year, I thought it was too noisy and fast. I felt like I was trying to be creative with a wood-chipper or a bag of chipmunks, which is what it sounds like.

Now I’m really loving it, although still working out some of the kinks in my process. I actually move the quilt back and forth between the two machines several times before I’m done with the whole project.

These are some of my practice samples — I develop new stitch patterns for each part of the quilt. Because I match the thread to my fabrics, the effects are subtle — you have to get up close to see the different stitching motifs.

The stitch patterns can be symbolic or decorative. This one doesn’t really mean anything, I was just happened to be thinking about lassos because I had seen City Slickers the night before (not a very good movie, but a cute cow.) So I think I’ll call this pattern, Happy Cowgirl.

Happy Cowgirl works good as I move around objects and into tight places. Some of my other patterns aren’t so flexible, so I have to improvise.

There’s a different stitch on the blue background, inspired by some abstract patterns I’ve seen on 50’s furniture or fabric. I used a variegated pink and blue King Tut thread for this, and if I get my rhythm right, the pinks fade in and out in a nice way.

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Quilting a Big One

June 5, 2007

It’s always exciting to take a design off the wall and start to quilt, and sometimes a relief. A relief after days (or sometimes months) of looking at, struggling with the composition, colors and patterns and finally committing.

Usually I start in the center, or with PaMdora’s face, which is this case is both and makes it kind of tough since there’s a lot of fabric to handle on each side. I start with the blacks to warm up and get my groove back, especially necessary after a long sabbatical from quilting.

Quilting is a meditative process, and I like to think of the stitched line as a thread of thought wandering over the surface of the entire quilt. As I sew, I imagine things to guide my hands and needle—images of grass, wind, water, leaves, kneecaps, noses….

Unfortunately during the thigh-stage, I couldn’t get cellulite out of my mind. On to a happier topic — check out my threads! They look organized, but I never slow down to wind the ends back onto the spools after I use them, so everything ends up a gnarly mess. I just give the whole rack a haircut when I’m done.

to be continued…

Filed Under process, studio | 11 Comments

Thread Said

June 2, 2007

I’ve been having lots of ideas for new things to try, and here’s another doodle — I’m calling it the Thread Said series. Don’t know where it’s going though, just playing around. I think it’s important to play, and summer seems like a good time to do it.

Filed Under uncategorized | 8 Comments

The Artist Statement

June 1, 2007

Sherrie asked what I meant by “Artist Statement” in the last post. It’s not a silly question — I didn’t know what one was before I started entering shows a few years ago. But you get asked for them a lot, sometimes in the entry form, or later, if you’re accepted into the show. There are also lots of other ways to use an artist statement.

I like what Ariane Goodwin says about it, “Most importantly, an artist statement enriches an artist’s connection to their work….Understanding and naming what we do through language is not to have the beauty or mystery dismantled; though, as artists, we often fear this.” Alyson B. Stanfield also offers an e-book and consulting on her website to help you write one.

Usually they’re short, but I just entered a show that allowed an artist statement of up to 500 words, so I used them all. I’d been writing stuff on planes for the last month, so I had lots of words to choose from. Planes are a good place to write stuff you’ve been putting off, because you’re trapped, there’s no escape!

Filed Under uncategorized | 5 Comments

The Food Pyramid

A Happy Anniversary

Another Meeting

Masters of the Brush

Finished Quilt

Quilting a Big One, part 2

Quilting a Big One

Thread Said

The Artist Statement

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