Finished at Last

Well, it seems it took an eternity equal to the entire sea, but my ocean piece is done.  I really got hung up on the foreground for a long time.  The greens I used were too bright and the eye would just get stuck there.  I wanted the horizon to be the focal point and the foreground took that away.  I finally dulled all the colors down using Shiva paintsticks in dark navy, brown and various greens.  I also wanted lots of small yellow flowers amidst the grasses.  They had to go.  Again, they were too bright and pulled the eye to the foreground.  I dulled the large rock on the left, as well.  

I'm pretty happy with the end result mostly because I had a September 30 deadline to get it done.  It has been entered in the Oregon SAQA show Oregon: Sate of Diversity.  As one of the organizers of the show, it would look embarrassing to not even get my entry finished.  So, we'll see if the jurors pick it or not.   Here's a detail shot of some of the stitching.

Acceptance!

I often apply to Calls to Artists for art galleries, not just quilt show entries.  I did recently get an acceptance letter to the Umpqua Valley Arts Association Center.  The theme of the show is Text Us, where text was supposed to be the main design element.  I submitted this one piece and it made the cut.  Hooray!  I'm always happy when I make it into a traditional gallery setting.  After quilts can be ART, too.  It's just a different medium for expression.

The title of this is "Just Read Between the Lines, Dear".  It is meant to be hung so it can be viewed from both sides.  Here's an image of the back side and a detail shot of that same side.

The Days Just Fly By!

Yes, they do, but they sure can be fun!  After a very cool, wet start, most days have been a perfect summer this year: low 50s at night and low to mid 80s in the day.  I haven't done much sewing or quilting, I must confess.  My garden at my "new" house is coming along really, really well.  I'm loving the colors and textures that are starting to emerge.  Here's the latest finished part.  The stone walkway was the last part to go in.  This following picture is what this part of the yard looked like almost exactly a year ago when I first started the rework of the back yard and the last picture is what it looked like when I bought the house.  Look out Home and Garden magazine!

Here's another before and after view standing with the vegetable garden to my back.  Still need to lay more gravel on this pathway but the plants are looking pretty happy.

Most Recent Art "Struggles"

OMG, I have not been able to blog since dropping my camera but adventures have continued.  With new camera in hand, I am back!  My latest art class was in June at the Oregon Garden Resort in Silverton, Oregon.  What a lovely,peaceful place to concentrate on making art, more drawing to be specific.

Here is one of our exercises that I felt came out the most successful.  We were challenged to draw the draped fabric (sorry bad exposure) showing the value changes that result from light hitting the cloth.  Color aside, the assignment was to capture shadow and highlights.  I was pleased with the results. 

Taking Art Classes

Someone recently asked me if my ocean quilt was being made from a pattern.  I told them that it was from a sketch I made from several inspiration photos.  I'm not sure they understood, or believed me.  

One thing I can say for sure is that I would not be able to do what I'm doing today if I had not taken some basic drawing classes.  Here is a recent exercise that I worked on.  This little fox figurine was set up on a white surface, with a floor lamp off to one side, so there was a strong light source casting shadows.  I did not finish my drawing but I still could, just from this photo.  Here's the result of my one hour of sitting, observing and sketching this cute little guy.

It's not perfect but then I don't think it needs to be.  The purpose is to really look at something and then put what you see down on the sketch pad.  What isn't there is as important as what is there.  Personally, I have found that highlights are more important to a drawing than shadow.  It seems that the lighter spots, in combination with the shadows, are what really make something look like it has rounded or curved areas, thus making it look three-dimensional.

I highly encourage anyone looking to make art of any kind, to take art classes.  Learn basic drawing techniques and art principles to make your work really start to rise to new levels.  Look for an art center or community college class that truly starts at the beginner level.  You'll be surprised at how fast you can advance with just a small amount of practice.

Now the Fun Begins

I'm pretty happy with how the fabrics are working to convey my scene.  I will still fuss over the flowers in the foreground but I couldn't wait to start quilting.  Laying in the texture, that comes from quilting, is my favorite part of a project.  I know many quilters only like the piecing part of the process, sending their finished quilt tops out to be quilted by someone else.  Whether I'm doing traditional piecing, or building a scene like this, I always look forward to putting in the quilting lines most of all.  

It is this texture that really pulls all the elements together, often obscuring where one fabric edge is laid over the top of another.  It's like blending paint and the closest a textile piece comes to being like a painting.  The quilting lines can bury mistakes or pull disparate elements together in a way that is fascinating.  It always makes me wonder how the eye and brain work.  It's like they want to see unity and matching color and the thread, laid on top, helps the brain do just that, even when it isn't quite there.

So, enjoy watching this develop as I continue to quilt the remaining parts.  I think I will tackle the large boulder on the left next.  That should bring it to life!

Keep Your Eye on the Horizon

Well, it's getting there.  As I took this picture I realized I will have to square up the edges by measuring off the straight horizon line.  I had to retake the photos because I made the bottom hang horizontally on my first attempt.  I got a wave of seasickness when I looked at the picture on the screen and realized the horizon was definitely NOT level.

I think I will still tweak the rock on the left a little bit and add another small one in the foreground.  The yellow dandelions still need stems and leaves but I'm pretty pleased with this so far.  My drawing classes have helped tremendously when doing this piece.  I can "see" in my mind where highlights and shadows might fall if I were doing this in paint.  The stitching comes next.  That really pulls everything together and helps the raw edges blend together almost invisibly. 

Don't Mind the Painter's Tape!

Yes, I know, I know, I need a design board so I can pin up works in progress.  One thing most art quilters learn  is that as you work on a piece, you should view it in a vertical position from time to time.  It is truly amazing the differences that appear when you take a project off the flat table and hang it on the wall.  Shape, size, color and perspective can all change in an instant.  Unless you're Jackson Pollock throwing paint around on the floor, most painters work on a vertical canvas for a very good reason.  The eye sees the relationship of all the elements in a more natural plain.  And, color is reflected differently in the vertical orientation as well.  This is true for fabric as well as paint.

So, here is my latest workings, a commission piece, in progress.  I cut up parts and pieces of fabrics where they have the color or texture I'm looking for.  All the pieces are backed with a fusible web (I'm partial to Lite Steam-a-Seam2).  Basically I am trying to "paint" with fabric the way one would use real paint.  At this point I'm working my way from the horizon forward, fusing little bits in place as I go.  Standing back at a distance to check perspective is a definite must in this situation.  So far so good, I think.

Here are a couple of the inspiration photos that were taken along the Oregon coast between the towns of Florence and Yachats.  There are some nice stretches of beach surrounded by rocky outcroppings.  These can create dramatic wave action.  While my scene does not exist exactly, it is a good representation of that stretch of wild coastline.

Back to Gardening, Back to Nature .... Back to Blogging

"SWEET POTATO PIE"

"HAPPY HARVEST"

The weather is warming up a little bit.  At least I feel that way since I seem to be wearing one less layer these days.  I have my raised bed boxes in place and filled with a layer of half decomposed leaves from from last Fall.  The next big step is to have several yards of garden mix dumped in my driveway to fill those boxes.  I'm not looking forward to the wheel barrel loads nearly as much as I'm looking forward to the summer harvest.

Anyway, I had so much fun making "Fresh Vegetables" last year, that I decided to make three individual pieces with the similar theme.  "Fresh Vegetables" has sold so I decided to replace them with these larger individual scenes.  I loved picking out all the fun fabrics.  Mixing checks, plaids, dots, and whatever other texture is in my famous stash gives me that creative rush.  Of course, it leaves my fabric shelves in a huge mess because no pile gets unturned.  Fortunately, there are plenty of rainy days in Oregon to be spent reorganizing.

These three pieces can be seen in a show titled "Back to Nature" at the Trinity Episcopal Cathedral at 147 NW 19th (at Everett), in Portland, Oregon.  The show will be open for viewing until April 27, 2011 and is a show put together by the members of High Fiber Diet art quilt group.

Enjoy the colors of these and enjoy the promise of spring weather and getting outside ... SOON!

"BLOOMIN' ONION"

The Frost is on the Pumpkins

It's that time again.  Crisp turns into cold.  Greens turn into golds.  I love the intensity of colors that the drop in temperature brigs to so many things.  This pumpkin on my doorstep was a real surprise, though.  Oregon weather is relatively mild so I had never seen a pumpkin with frost on it before.  Could it have been touched by a Halloween spirit the night before?  Who knows?  

I took some close-up shots as well.  Could be fun to play with in Photoshop and print out onto fabric.  Guess it's time to get my jackets out so I don't turn into a frosty pumpkin myself.