Disappearing Nine Patch

Even though I am primarily an art quilter, I am still drawn to create bed quilts, particularly when a clever pattern comes along. It's all in the process...
This Disappearing Nine Patch was created for a new baby in my extended family. It is an unusual selection of fabrics because the challenge for me was to use only what is in my stash. I could probably make quilts the rest of my life with what is in my stash, but getting them to go together in a reasonably pleasing manner is a trick. I'm pleased with the results here.

Cher in the Spotlight

Two of my chair pieces have been accepted into a juried show at All Souls Unitarian Church and so I going to work some more with my chairs. Works in progress (sort of) will be stacked chairs for an exhibit in the fall and a front view chair for the 5 x 5 show in the Spring (tell me, please, that Spring will actually arrive!) Both are planned to be applique pieces......we'll see.

Still working after all these years

Yes, yes..I have neglected my blog for 2+ years but I'm back. Snow day today giving me time to get caught up with all manner of things. This new piece was created for a show called Frost in Winter. It is my interpretation of a Robert Frost poem "After Apple Picking." It is quite large, about 36" x 48" and is done with rusted fabrics, rusted metal objects, hand drawn image and text printed directly onto fabric (unprimed canvas.) The piece won a judge's choice award at the Tulsa Artists Coalition Gallery.

THE BREAST PROJECT

Several local artists, including myself, were invited to participate in a fund raising project to aid in the fight against breast cancer. The artists were to "decorate" plaster casts taken from women who had lost a friend or relative to breast cancer.

Although it was a natural for me to collage the plaster cast with paper and fabric, I chose, instead to make fairly realistic breasts to celebrate the breast "au naturale" and breast health. I covered the cast on the outside with cotton quilt batting to soften them and then covered them with cotton/spandex in a flesh tone. I then made hands with the cotton/spandex and stuffed them with polyfil. Using oil pastels, I added some color contrast on the breasts and fingers. There was a lot of hand sewing involved in modeling the breasts and hands and attaching the hands. I found that a curved upholstery needle helped tremendously.

The breasts will be auctioned at a gala event in October.

Body of Work

I've been working in a grid style since the beginning of 2007 in order to produce a "body of work" which is consistent and recognizable as mine. For the most part, I am trying to work within self made parameters which are (1) using unprimed canvas as fabric and (2) using stitches, usually hand stitches of various kinds.

The works you see here are "Fragments", at the top, which is a large piece (about 22" x 44") stretched on wooden canvas stretchers and framed. It is hand dyed canvas with squares of hand painted cotton and hand stiched with cotton string.

The second piece "Knockout" is small (about 6" x 6") with hand painted cotton muslin stretched over an artist canvas. Unprimed and burnt canvas squares are fused on and galvanized metal knockouts are applied. Perl cotton is used to attach burlap threads. This piece is not framed and the hand painted fabric wrapping the sides become part of the artwork.

Several other gridded pieces are in progress. In addition I have several grid-style art quilts finished earlier this year which are now showing in Oklahoma art galleries.

Something there is that doesn't love a Fence!

Alas, it has finally happened. The owner of the huge subdivision (without houses, so far) has erected a fence to keep us out! No dogs, no pigs, no cows, no people will be allowed into the sub except those going through the big white archway seen in the picture. It is a gated community now. The biggest problem for me and the others on our street is that we have nowhere to walk our dogs or walk ourselves or jog (if that is what one is into). The road to which we lost access goes up into the hills from which we can access the Botanical Gardens without driving downtown and back up the hill on the other side of a steep and narrow canyon. Many local workers used this road to walk to and from work. One neighbor has dubbed it the Berlin Wall.

Trip to Art Quilt Tahoe

As I did last year, I attended Art Quilt Tahoe in California in November. This year I had a class with Gerry Chase whose art quilts I have admired for many years. We painted on fabric using a djanting tool that is usually used for wax batik. Then those paintings were ripped apart, literally, and the pieces used to compose quilt tops along with the other fabrics and embellishment we brought with us.

Gerry is a marvelous teacher and a mentor in professionalism in art quilting. The class was all I could have wanted and much, much more.
Thank you Gerry and all the other students in the class for a memorable event.

Day of the Dead

We celebrated the Day of the Dead in San Miguel with visitors from the U.S., Rain Johnson and Amber Whitlatch and their sons, Ogden and Jubal. All of us made votive candles to welcome back from the dead our dear departed. Then we made this offrenda, an altar offering for them. It is traditional to scatter marigold blossoms to light the way and make offerrings of favorite foods and drink. A sugar skull and some pan de muerte (bread of the dead) rounded out the altar. We lit many candles and let them burn all night while we went to the Jardin to view some related entertainment. A very nice evening in all while we remembered those who could not be with us in person as they were in spirit.