Jumpstarts

Encrusted Crazy Quilts

2009-04-13T03:17:00.000-07:00

Still not finished, but more progress made. This has been an interesting process. I'm not likely to do crazy quilt patches for the sole purpose of displaying my embroidery skills. (The little girl who could never stitch a sampler without causing a tangled mess and whose school papers always looked untidy is still alive and well these many years later--my embroidery will improve as I work on it, but will never be a "showcase" skill. Still, it's a positive addition to the toolbox, and the idea of crazy quilting as a method of communicating a message is an appealing one that could use some exploring. If nothing more, the handstitching process is a very meditatitve one, and that alone is sufficient.

Encrusted Crazy Quilts

2009-04-07T03:21:00.001-07:00

Some more small progress. Many people in this class have not only finished beautifully done, heavily stitched blocks, but have done multiple blocks. For every stitch I've left behind, I've torn out dozens. I should have followed Sharon's layering instructions--I can see the logic behind them now that I've worked with this block for a while. I used trellis stitch to raise a "wall" around the lime, buttonhole stitch in perle cotton on most of the other citrus shapes. I'm not at all sure where I will go from here, but the journey is fun, and it's been nice to slow down and sink into a project.

Encrusted Crazy Quilts

2009-03-31T02:59:00.001-07:00

Continuing with Sharon B's Encrusted Crazy Quilt class, I've been through the "yapping puppy" stage where ideas about a project's direction are coming fast and furiously. The lesson I have to learn over and over is not to become so wedded to one of those pups that the natural development of the project gets stifled right at the beginning. (Note to self: Not a good idea to post pictures for all the world to see during the yapping-puppy stage.)

Anyway, I've traveled a different path, with a nod to Magritte, which came about as I was obsessing about my lack of any thread that was just the right green for the "lime." There's still much be done, but I'm beginning to get a glimmer of an idea about how to proceed. I've always admired crazy quilters (and also quilters/embroiderers who work on crazy quilt blocks!), but I have an increased respect for the men and women who put together these beautiful works of art. Sharon's class--a wealth of information, well presented--is a good introduction, and the number of online resources available, both through www.pintangle.com and other generous people about the web, is amazing.

Encrusted Crazy Quilt Continues

2009-03-19T02:30:00.000-07:00

So, here's one seam treatment sketched out. I thought I would continue with the buttonhole stitch wheels, only flip them to create mini-beach umbrellas. You can see that the reality is not as tidy as the sketch, and I'm a little doubtful, but my motto is "when in doubt, plow ahead." I began the word "Summertime" with a huge "S," which may turn out to be a mistake--oops, I mean "an encrusting opportunity." Things are not showing up so well. Here's where I pay for the mistake of not changing my fabric choices early on. I'm hoping that once I put a hot summer sun in the upper left quandrant, some balance will start magically appearing!

Encrusted Crazy Quilt

2009-03-13T02:25:00.000-07:00

So, as proof that I'm crazy, I signed up for another of Sharon Boggon's classes (her classes are wonderful, but I never seem to keep up and actually finish--that's the crazy part of it). Still it's another year with the resolution not to procrastinate (let's see, exactly when did I last post here...?) I took this particular class to try to overcome my habit of always stopping short when working on embellished projects. I never do quite enough. I'm hoping that these projects will teach me to loosen up a bit.

Anyway, the block's assembled, one little seam finish is started, some possible embellishment areas are blocked out (with some wonky scanning). Im not thrilled with the block itself, but I've putzed about long enough and decided to just move forward.

So, here's "Ain't Got time for the Summertime Blues" in very rough draft form.

New Year - Making Lists

2009-01-08T03:52:00.000-08:00

My 2009 goal of updating the blog regularly is slipping away, so here's the first post of the new year. Today, I'm thinking about lists, because inevitably a new year brings with it the temptation to make lists. From childhood up until I was in my forties, I was an obsessive list-maker. Then, in cleaning out a pile of clutter, I discovered a 5-year-old to-do list, and it was nearly identical to my most recent list. At that point, I quit, and during the subsequent years, the mere thought of making a list--even a simple one--evoked a major adverse psychological response.

I will say here that one of the most useful lists I ever made was "Ten Things That Make Me as Mad as Hell and What I can do About Them." For 2 or 3 things, it turned out there was nothing to be done, so I just turned loose of the Mad-as-Hell part. As for the remainder, I did something about a few of them, and decided that for one or two, the solution was not acceptable and, again, let go of the MAH.

For 2008, I actually made a virtual, relatively unscary list: make a start on growing an edible landscape (information gathered, but no food planted), transform my couch potato self into something new (took up off-road biking and kayaking), travel someplace interesting (Wyoming, and the South Carolina low country).

I'll probably keep those three for 2009 and add "more community service." And--for once--I'd like to actually complete an entire year's worth of Sharon Boggon's challenge.

For those into lifelists: http://www.43things.com/

Happy New Year (just a tad bit late).

pdc

Studio Sketchbooks and Journals - July 30

2008-07-30T06:39:00.000-07:00

I've been working in the studio sketchbook, but haven't anything to post at present (translation: I'm really far behind, as usual, but at least this time it's not because I've been unproductive.)

Still, if I don't do anything else today, I'll be pasting this in a prominent place, both in the sketchbook and on the wall! From Maggie Stiefvater's blog (be sure to scroll down and take a look at her other 5 steps for success):

6. Who Are You?
What do you tell people? What do you want to be able to tell people? "I'm an artist." "I'm a writer." "I'm a five foot tall basketball player." Now let's pretend that these people can drop into your life randomly seven different times over seven different days. What will they find you doing? Will they find you, the artist, creating art or developing marketing plans for it? The writer writing? The basketball player shooting hoops? Or will they find you procrastinating . . . watching TV, folding laundry that could wait until after your dreams get tended to, reading my blog, running unnecessary errands. The fact of the matter is that you need to make your dreams your identity. Long before I was a published author, I told people I was a writer and an artist, and if you dropped in at my house randomly at any given time, that's what you'd find me doing.

And - right in line with the emotion I want to pack into a Girl15 piece I've perpetually working on, the following:

It's a question of wanting it, people. It's why I like writing for teens. Do you remember being a teen? When you had dreams so big they actually hurt to think you wouldn't get them? You need to sweep away the years of cynicism and putting your dreams aside and really harness that wanting again. In the end, watching So You Think You Can Dance won't change your life. But finishing that drawing, writing that paragraph, planting that garden -- whatever your dream is -- that will.

Onward!

Studio Sketchbooks and Journals - July 15

2008-07-15T02:27:00.000-07:00

This is the first post for Sharon Boggon's online Studio Journals class. I'm only 3 weeks behind, which isn't bad for me. My opening page is pretty ugly, but served as an ice breaker, nonetheless. The Rumi poem (translated by Coleman Barks) is a favorite:

"Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing,

there is a field-- I'll meet you there."

A reminder that ugly pages are ok - just get busy. I dated, included name, address, and telephone number, thereby giving the journal legitimacy as something not to be lost.

I've added some pertinent quotes from this class. Several reminded me of the individual responsibility each of us has for developing our own creativity and skills. I thought Sharon's point about the journal serving as a catalyst to moving from the passive to the active was a good one. I loved her comparison of the journal to a compost heap. Since I am reading up and preparing to develop an edible landscaping plan for my yard, this one struck me as pretty apt.
Thinking along the lines of my edible landscape led, inevitably to thoughts about how to capture garden plans, dooryards, gardens in general in textile and stitch.

Take It Further Challenge - May 2008

2008-05-27T04:19:00.001-07:00

The Take it Further Challenge for May 2008 asks us to define ourselves as an artist. I would define myself as a listener. The universe has spent a lot of time and effort over the decades teaching me to listen, and now that I'm finally--well--actually listening, I find that being a listener is a wonderful conduit for creativity. The added bonus is that listening, while seemingly a passive activity, is actually a great springboard for positive, productive activity and interactivity with people around me and the community at large.

The piece I'm envisioning (still "virtual, of course) is a monochromatic blue field with a single vessel or vase stitched in a very simple outline stitch of some sort. I think this might convey both the calmness of truly listening and the idea of waiting to be filled with whatever the "speaker" (whether a real speaker or a muse of some sort) has to offer.

In the meantime, I'm off to kindergarten graduation (Next there'll be a graduation ceremony when our newborns leave the hospital nursery. Still, as a grandparent, its a joyous thing to experience all the rituals without having to worry about finding that right outfit and hairbow and the missing prop that absolutely was right there in plain sight until you're hurriedly trying to get to the school auditorium on time!)

pdc

Take it Further Challenge - April

2008-04-06T17:39:00.000-07:00

Sharon B has posted the Take it Further Challenge for April. The question of the month: "How do you see change?" (The above, I am told, is a Chinese symbol for change.) I love this topic, because I'm fascinated with the changes that occur within our individual lives, changes that occur in family and friends, changes of season, changes in attitutudes (and--of course, changes in latitudes), changes in weather....I could go on. I love this poem by American poet David Wagoner. I began developing a series on changes called "Girl15/Woman50" sometime ago, but it's not much beyond the sketchbook change. I did draft out an embroidery piece in Sharon B's sumptious surfaces class, but this is only in its infancy stage. I like the image of the door used by David Wagoner in his poem. I may do something with this image. On the other hand, I am changing myself (at age 57!) from a couch potato to a more active person, which is a very big change indeed. A fantastic local personal trainer agreed to work with me on developing a bicycling course for adult beginners (well, we DO know how to balance on the bike and steer--but not much else). Take a look here at our Sunday morning ride. I'm also taking an online journalmaking class. This might be a good project: a bicycling journal that could be a gift for the trainer who has been so encouraging to me as I venture forth on this new phase of my life.

We'll see what emerges.

pdc

2008 - Create, Celebrate, Rejuvenate

2008-04-02T10:31:00.000-07:00

For some reason, the title phrase just struck me in early January, and I'm finding that 2008 is, indeed, shaping into one of those great years. I'm not the only one feeling it. My former neighbor and forever-walking partner feels it, small children in my circle are excited and enthusiastic (more than ordinarily so), great projects seem to take on lives of their own, and I've actually---gasp--been cooking again on a regular basis, eating healthily, and following a regular cardio routine. One of my informal goals for the last couple of years has been to begin bicycling. I wasn't all that great on a bike even when I was a kid, and I don't expect that to have miraculously changed over the last few decades. Still, I e-mailed my former trainer extraordinare Diane Arnold, and she agreed to work with me on forming up a 6-week adult beginner bicycling class that would take place on a half dozen different community trails around and about Tallahassee. She (being the perpetual nag--oops, I mean trainer--also decided to throw in some upper body resistance training. So, we're on. It was as simple as beginning. Who knew. Take a look here for more. Sounds like a great topic for a journal for Sue B's journal making class. And I've got just the fabric (don't ask me why I acquired this fabric, but I'm sure I had a reason at the time. And, anyway, who needs a reason? (Although I do think I have a funkier graphic bicycle print somewhere in the depths of the stash pile(s).)

Craft

2008-03-18T04:20:00.000-07:00

I'm always interested in the great debate between "art" and "craft," and feel that the terms "craft" and "craftsman" have taken an unfair beating in recent years--somehow becoming confused with the arts and crafts that we learned at camp and in primary school. (Who can forget macaroni necklaces, and twenty ways to decorate coffee cans?)There have been some interesting discussions of the subject on the BBC recently. Here's one podcast. Sharon B. has a link to an interesting downloadable lecture on the topic here. And there's a nice discussion with Richard Sennet on a BBC podcast here. Of course, the web is full of great resources on the topic. I think I'll download a podcast or two and take to the backyard with my glass of wine and enjoy the lovely spring weather we're having at present.

Take It Further Challenge - February - Midmonth

2008-02-13T01:51:00.000-08:00

February is halfway gone, and I haven't made much progress with my "what do you remember" February challenge. I had plans to begin an altered book project, but have tabled that temporarily. In spite of all the events of the last half of the 20th century and the beginning of this century, the memories that are truly imprinted are those of the women in my family working together--whether sewing, cooking, cleaning the kitchen. One memory that sums this up best is that of shelling peas. The hampers of peas would be picked in the spring, and we'd all sit around (I was still a child) shelling peas. Popping the shells, stripping out the peas into a galvanized tub, and--periodically running your hands through the shelled peas. From the field through the hands of the women into Mason jars and onto the pantry shelf. Slowly as the season progressed and the tomatos, peas, beans, corn came into season--each at their own time--the shelves would fill, and before long, there would be orderly rows of glass jars and an array of color: yellow squash, orange-red tomatoes, pale lima beans, black-eyed peas with snaps. Busy years have intervened, but I can still feel the rhythm of those days and hear the soft voices of the women of my family around me--grandma, Aunt Eloise, my own mother--only my mother left now except in my memory and in my heart.

Take it Further Challenge - Feburary 2008 - Format

2008-02-02T10:37:00.001-08:00

I've decided the form that my February project will take. I've been collecting materials on and doing some writing for a couple of artbook projects. I just got my copy of Volume 2 of the Thr3foldJournal, which showcases the work of from Linda and Laura Kemshall and Catherine Nicholls. The journal is a lovely piece of inspiration. Although altered books (as opposed to completely "from scratch" ones) haven't been all that appealing before, I think that's the track I'll go down. I believe I'll use tabs to divide people, places, events, and things. I'll just plug away at writing and messing about this month, and the project will remain open-ended for the future, providing a background for experimentation with writing, stitch, fabric work, and paint.

So, that much is decided. Now on to the fun!
pdc

Take it Further Challenge - February

2008-02-01T03:59:00.000-08:00

Well, Sharon B has posted the concept and palette for the February TIF. This month's challenge: Stop and think what are you old enough to remember. You do not have to declare your age - but simply what you are old enough to remember.

January's challenge was wonderful, and I am still exploring the beautiful work produced by participants and--what I love even more--the participants' blogs.

The palette can be seen here--not a group of colors I would normally work with, but it may be time to expand.

Preliminarily, I think it would be fun to explore this topic with an artbook. I have ideas for two artbooks percolating, so maybe this challenge will be just the "jumpstart" needed to get me moving on those as well.

pdc

Take It Further Challenge - January 2008 -

2008-01-30T18:52:00.000-08:00

January's challenge was to design a project based upon someone you admire. In my case, I chose my mother. (See what the group has done by going here. and more about the challenge here. As I worked through the project, I realized that the qualities that make her admirable are also those that I treasure in my closest friends and family members: courage, steadfastness, loyalty, honesty, peace, compassion, tolerance. In my mother's case, these are a reflection of a religious faith that has been a part of her make-up for all her life. Separate from that, I believe that these traits are some of the best we humans have to offer, regardless of nationality, culture, gender, ethnicity, or religious belief. I chose a rural scene with mountains in the distance--a scene my mom would love, but also a symbolic one, I think. ("I will look to the hills from whence cometh my strength.") I placed bright yellow circular sun in a clear blue sky. I imprinted the traits I admire on an organza overlay and cut this fabric in a traditional steepled church shape. I wanted the church to overlay the natural environment, because a belief system that limits itself to the four walls of a brick and mortar structure is not worth very much (in my humble opinion). Instead, I feel that the principles which guide a life should be fully intergrated into the everyday trappings of our existence (a big goal, but one worth striving for).
I did make a design choice which I may regret--I decided to quilt over the organza overlay and incorporate it into the underlying piece. I think I may change that.
I embroidered a very crooked line of coral stitch ) thank you Sharon B's stitch encyclopedia: along the base of the mountains to give them some bottom weight and tie them into the environment. (I suspect that the "crookedness" of the stitch might make it something other than the coral stitch, but I am genetically unequipped to do the beautiful embroidery work that I admire so much.
The fabrics for the landscape are hand-dyed leftovers from a Melody Johnson fusing workshop. (Melody generously shares her lazy dyer's dying method here.)
Taking this further: I know I'll continue to explore the theme of the organized church and its influence (both positive and negative) on society in the southeastern part of the U.S. in future pieces.
pdc

Take it Further Challenge - January, Week 2 progress

2008-01-08T00:56:00.000-08:00

I've finally decided on a general design. The effect--both positive and negative--of the church as an institution and of religious faith on individuals and society is a theme I've explored before and will again. The church is an appropriate symbol here because my mother's faith is as much a part of her as skin, blood and bone. It is from her religious study and belief system that she has gathered the principles that have guided her life over the years - love, peace, compassion, steadfastness, loyalty, honesty, patience, courage, tolerance. These are not qualities that she puts on and off like a Sunday best dress. They inform her every decision and are the benchmarks against which she measures herself. The church will be set beneath an oak tree--a symbol of strength and a big part of the natural landscape of the southeastern part of the USA where she has spent much of her life. In the distance will be mountains ("Look to the hills from whence cometh your strenth). The piece will be small - no larger than 5x7, and aiming for around 4x6.
pdc

Take it Further Challenge - January, Week 2

2008-01-07T03:41:00.001-08:00

My January project is still very much a "virtual" one, existing only in my cluttered mind, so the goal this week is to get something concrete done. I have been turning over the usual words that come to mind when you think of "a life"--patchwork, sampler, tapestry, woven threads. This morning Sharon B's blog included a link to some Constance Howard samplers via the Visual Arts Data Service site. The sampler at pictured at the left was really interesting to me. My mother is the person whom I chose for this project, and both patchwork and needlework of various type have always been a big part of her life. She is also a lover of nature, weather, the sea. I think incorporating a stitch sampler that perhaps spells out--literally--the qualities I find so admirable in her--might be incorporated into this project. I also like the idea of incorporating charms or talismans into the project. Because her religious faith is so much a part of her, I think some "prayer bead" or prayer fringing might be worked in. If I'm going to get anything accomplished, however, I have got to stop playing mind games and get to work!

Take It Further Challenge - January - Mindmapping

2008-01-02T01:50:00.000-08:00

I'm glad Sharon re-introduced me to mindmapping in her class. It's a nice jumpstart tool. One thought leads to another, and the whole process is a very contemplative one. I've decided to use my mother as my most admired person. She's 83, and one of my 2008 goals is to spend more quality time with her. My map includes experiences that shaped her (she grew up during the depression years, which in the U.S. spanned from late 1929 through the early 1940's), was a telegraph and switchboard operator during WWII, was raised, in part, in a rural background on a tenant farm), the various important roles she played in other's lives, and the traits which I admire so much. So, I'll spend the month of January with mom very much on my mind. It will be an interesting month. I can't yet see what form this project will take, but since fabric, handwork, and quilting were (and still are) a very big part of her life, I suspect it we're headed for a small art quilt project with some poetry, writing and embellishment.

Sharon B's Take it Further - January

2008-01-01T03:37:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year. Sharon B has posted the January Take it Further challenge. For January, we're to consider who we look up to and admire, and why. There's also a color palette posted which can be used as an alternative challenge or combined with the first concept. I'm definitely going to work on the "person" challenge, and have several people in mind. I'm going to start by exploring two areas: mindmapping the traits I find admirable in my mother and one of my daughters, and exploring the symbolism of color to see if these traits can be reflected by the palette I choose for this piece. Mindmapping is a concept I was first introduced to by my neighbor and walking partner, but I really didn't use it much until I took Sharon B's Sumptuous Surfaces class. It's a great tool to use at the beginning of a project. If you google mindmap, you'll find lots of sites that offer free trials for software, but you can take off "wirelessly" by sitting down with your journal and pen and having at it. So, for this first week, I'll mindmap the concept, explore the symbolism of color, and begin to think about what medium I'll work in. Can't wait to see what this very creative group turns out this month!

Mapping Communities and Resources

2007-12-14T10:11:00.000-08:00

You now how you become really aware of an idea or concept for the first time and then, suddenly, you find you are surrounded by related information? It's a very human experience. I was taken with a recent article on the mapping of natural resources by certain South American tribes and was discussing this with my neighbor/walking partner/confessor/priestess who also happens to be a practicing anthropolgist (yes, there really is a way to make a living with anthropolgy!), and behold--she presented me with the Fall 2007 issue of Practicing Anthropolgy dedicated to mapping communities through participatory GIS (PGIS) and applied perspectives on poverty and wealth. The cover example shows a map of a city's water availability: newer, perimeter barrios - never have water; elders wtih no indoor faaucet, "Mayor's street: always has water" "Hospital: rarely has water" "PanAmerican highway: always has water." The issue contains many examples of participatory GIS: community health assessment; accessible space; literacy; elder well-being. It's amazing how much more effective these maps are in explaining the realities of a community than, say, a set of statistics, pie charts, or bar graphs. (By the way, here's a link to a participatory map of quilt artists)

Many artists (see some links below) are drawn to map themes. Artists working in all media are inspired by what's going on around them. Participitory GPS mapping seems to be one more way of perceiving our individual "universes." We may be surprised at what we see, and what better way to communicate these new perceptions than through the creative process? Quoting Wendy Osterweil: "Art allows us to imagine the lives and struggles of others, people that we are not able otherwise to contact. In the tradition of quilters as storytellers, I am trying to piece together a story, trying to make some kind of imaginative sense. Much remains to be told."

An avenue worth exploring in your own studio? Use a mindmap to mess about in your journal--how would you map your house, your yard, your community, your local political and social issues, the flora and fauna--the list could go on forever. Below are just a few of the many artists who have used maps for their inspiration:

Artists: Valerie Goodwin
Ian Hundley
Fulvia Luciano

pdc

Take It Further Challenge

2007-12-12T06:15:00.000-08:00

Yikes!! Already time to begin making resolutions to work in the studio and do online updates regularly in 2008. Sharon B has listed the challengers for her Take It Further Challenge, so the heat is on!

Here's wishing a world of peace, security, and abundance to everyone. (Why not wish big, right?)

pdc

Re-energizing with Sharon B's "Take it further Challenge"

2007-12-04T03:02:00.000-08:00

How many people around the world are preparing to "resolve" not to procrastinate any more when the calendar changes to 2008? Me, too. I'm hoping to use this Take it Further Challenge to get some concrete work done this year. Take a look. Over 120 participants so far, so plenty of inspiration and motivation available!

pdc

Sumptuous Surfaces Class - Hand embroidery class over, but I'm still at week 1

2007-08-15T18:16:00.001-07:00

Well, sometimes you get totally wedded to an idea at the beginning and when the moment comes for execution, it falls flat. So it was that I pictured Girl15 as having organza wings with metallic stitching. I had just the right hand-dyed organza--lovely variegated oranges. But once I had it stitched down, I realized that Girl15 just couldn't leap with sparkly organza wings. The "frou-frous" immediately diminished the strength of her leap. This was unexpected and interesting to me.

So--an evening's worth of stitching to be cut away and a new start tomorrow. And not only an evening's worth of work, but several days worth of "mind-time" spent figuring out just how I was going to stitch these organza wings.

I wonder if this misstep would have been avoided if I had used my sketchbook in a more detailed way. Generally, my sketching is limited to getting the rough contours of my idea on paper, and then I sort of feel my way through. Think I'll experiment for a while with actually working on paper instead of just mucking about in my mind.

So, as I was exploring change in artwork, I didn't land on anything very helpful from a philosophical standpoint, but did land on a favorite artist: Andy Goldsworthy. Enjoy.

pdc
(who is at this moment brandishing her scissors!)

Sumptuous Surfaces-Girl15 Embroidery, Future quilt, Attitudinal angels

2007-08-10T02:38:00.001-07:00

Well, Girl 15 has paper wings, and her sun has a bit more stitching, but I've still a way to go before finishing everything up. Girl15 will make a trip to Georgia this week-end as part of a continuing campaign to tempt my 5-year-old granddaughter to enter the world of bewitching stitching!

Also plundered through the used book store yesterday and discovered my attitudinal angels which can be transferred into the background of the art quilt version of this piece. See if you don't agree that these background angels with their various hand positions and head angles look as though they would have a few--perhaps not so angelic--words to saw about Girl15's launch.

The full-sized piece is a 14th-Century piece known as the Wilton Diptych and entitled "King Richard II kneeling before the Virgin." If you really take a detailed look at these older works of art, there is much that can be translated to contemporary art.