Nature Inspired Art – Page 14

Live a little longer

I dabble in genealogy and really find connection with a Mexican tradition called the “three deaths.” Our first death is when our bodies cease to function. The second death is when our body is lowered into the ground. And the 3rd death is when our name is spoken for the last time.

Last week I wrote about my curiosity regarding the longevity of my art quilts. In that post, I was basically contemplating the three deaths , not some unrealistic concern about becoming famous. As I do genealogy, I love discovering a relative who’s been dead a very long time. I sense that when I find them, that they’ve been resurrected.

For me after I’m forgotten, I hope every so often there’s a quilt or 2 hiding somewhere which resurrects itself (me). Realistically, textiles are a very fragile medium to work with. There are so many factors which can destroy them into piles of thread and dust. As I prepare for my solo exhibit later this year, I’m thinking about what this all means … to be making things.

I’m near completion of a piece I’ve been working on for awhile and it struck me that there are things getting buried during the construction. I’ve added a lot of thread painting to this piece. This week, when it was time to quilt it, I had to cover up the back-side of the stitching. It amazed me to see how my stitching created its own art piece.

It makes me think that maybe, this process of creating can also experience it’s own stages of life and three deaths. My thread painting was once an active part of the process, but that is over now and buried behind layers of fibers. When you see the finished piece, the thread work does not take center stage as is does on the back. It becomes blended into the layers of fabric, color and quilting. This secondary art piece I unintentionally created is likely never to be seen again. So, I thought maybe if I leave it’s picture here, it might live a little longer.

Never too late to learn

I have always enjoyed learning. Learning doesn’t always have to mean learning a physical or intellectual skill. Sometimes you can learn about yourself and what works for you.

For example, the past several months I’ve been working on and blogging about a new art quilt inspired by a visit to Muir Wood National Monument. This piece is huge and, at times, a little unruly. Two weeks ago, I found that I was getting very frustrated with the progress of this piece. Because I really wanted to get it finished, I kept trying to plug along with it.

Every piece I make is unique and requires different techniques to accomplish my vision, therefore I’m not very systematic about what I do. As I progressed on this piece, I realized I was super tense working on it. Little obstacles kept appearing that made me re-think my path forward. During my most intense frustration, I posed a question to an online group asking them what they do when they feel this way: “Do you keep going and fight through the frustration?” or, “do you call a time out, put it away and start working on something else?” I got mixed responses, but most seemed to agree walking away was a good choice.

I’ve always tried to drive on, but this time I had other small projects I could work on to allow a temporary break from the large quilt. This week I put the Muir quilt under the needle again. Its amazing how my attitude has changed. I’m once again excited about stitching on this quilt top. I learned something new about my creative self – stepping away is a good thing. Sometimes deadlines keep me from having this luxury but, I also don’t think I do my best work when I’m stressed. With this experiment I learned something new about myself: I can and should take a break when I need it.

Knowing how you work and what you need to succeed is owning a very valuable tool for your productivity. Do you pay attention to your feelings when you work? You know, it’s never too late to learn.

Progress

I’m working on the thread painting stage of my latest quilt. Here’s a view of the back.

I’m not too concerned about how pretty it looks from this side, because in a little bit I will be covering it up with the batting layer and backing fabric. Once that’s finished you’ll never see this view again.

This quilt has been a bit of a challenge (sometimes they behave that way). While I was working on the foliage, I noticed something visually happening with the background. It truly bothered me, so I had to think about it for awhile. What do I about that issue? Hmm?

I don’t make cookie-cutter quilts designs. Its layer, upon layer of processes. Each quilt deserves a different treatment because I’m trying to represent different subject matter. You just can’t build a tree the same way you build a bird.

Some of my techniques are similar, but I’m literally winging it on every quilt. That’s why it takes me so long sometimes to complete these larger pieces. I have to look at what I’ve done and figure out how to do what’s next.

The good news is I’ve moved passed the tree foliage and I’m working on texturizing the tree trunks with thread painting. The problem has apparently been solved for now. Progress.

Where you’re going

I’m on a roll with my latest artwork. Trees are positioned and its time to add the foliage. This is a bit tedious, because I’m not using a pattern. The tree trunks were cut from a pattern, but the deep groves and foliage are being free-form cut, positioned in place and then fused. Once I have all the greenery in place, I’ll start the thread work. I will quilt and stitch the layers together adding dimension with free-form machine embroidery. Still quite a bit to do, but I can see the progress.

Life is like that. Progress may not be quick, but as along as you keep working at it you’ll see the changes. Never give up, because little by little, you’ll eventually get to where you’re going.

Looking for more

I’m working on a group challenge this year that is forcing me to look at the details of an object. So, what do I really see when I see something? There are a number of ways that I look closer at an object.

Sometimes I do it with binoculars. I see the birds at the bird feeder and pull out the binocs to look at the details of the wings or feather coloration. Today, I saw a bird fluttering about the feeder and I wasn’t sure, but thought I was seeing blue. With the aide of the binoculars, I clearly saw that it was a male indigo bunting. That was exciting to to see and felt like I’d won a prize.

Another way I see details is to plop myself on the ground and look close. Frequently, as I sit on the ground, I’ll use my cellphone camera to take micro shots of tiny objects. I get as close as I can and zoom in. Its amazing the fine detail you can see with these photos.

Once I have a good image, I’ll look for more details by zooming in on it with photo editing software. For example, this week I opened up a photo of a Monarch butterfly that I took several years ago. I zoomed in and cropped the photo to show just a portion of the full image. I find it interesting because you see things that you might not normally see.

I printed the cropped image on photo transfer paper, then applied it to fabric. I guess I could have moved on from there, but the process of stitching the image forced me to look even closer at the details. As I stitched, I paid close attention to the shapes, lines, and colors in the wing. So many layers of detail. As I delve deeper into this project, I realize I am consciously and unconsciously looking for more.

Being true to my creative self

Frequently, I’m asked “How long did it take to make that?” I really wish I knew. Sorry, but I don’t time myself, it could be very depressing to know. When people ask, I usually answer them with the amount of time its taken from inspiration to completed quilt. This literally could be years. I think what they really want to know is how many hours it took me from cutting the first piece of fabric until I stick the label on the back and hang it. That’s much more difficult to quantify without timing myself along the way.

However, the other day, I was working on a new piece (I blogged about weeks ago) and I happened to notice that I spent nearly 3 hours cutting and positioning little bits of black fabric. I took a picture of my progress. Great! I’m half-way through this step! … right? ….uhm?

I left it alone overnight and when I looked at it the next day I knew I couldn’t live with it. Something wasn’t right, so I referred to my reference photos. Sure enough, I couldn’t live with what I had done (you may not even see the difference in the 2 photos).

My saving grace was that the black bits where only pinned to my design wall. Sometimes, I’m not so cautious and fuse (glue) the pieces in place without giving the design some space to percolate in my brain. Once something is fused I’m usually stuck. I either a) live with it, b) come up with plan B to fix the issue, or c) scrap it and start over.

I’ve blogged about the “point of no return” that I frequently face when I create my art quilts. There are layers and layers of process in my pieces. Literally, each step could lead to fatality. This is one reason I may step away until I feel emboldened to tackle the next step.

With this new piece, I re-grouped and fixed the problem. I’m much happier with where its going, but many hours later I’m not much farther along than I was a few days ago. There’s still plenty of work to do. I’m really OK with this, its how I do things. The finished piece has to fit what’s in my head, otherwise what’s the point of making it?

I do, however, have a problem with the fixation on time. I really don’t care how long it took me. That’s not why I’m doing this. I try to work faster/smarter, but I also work very hard at not beating myself up about it. I’ve accepted, this is how I create. Anything else is not being true to my creative self.

Being part of this tribe

I’m back from an amazing couple of days with my “tribe.” I am an active member and volunteer for SAQA (Studio Art Quilt Associates). Last week they held their annual conference in San Antonio, TX and I had the opportunity to attend. This was the 3rd conference I attended. I enjoy going because I reconnect with friends from all over the world. There’s also a ton of inspiration packed in those 4 days.

It is so rewarding to be around people who get what you’re doing and support you. That’s what a tribe is. A tribe can be your family or friends or professional acquaintances. SAQA is my art quilt tribe. I find it inspiring to share ideas with people who are on the same journey.

I also have another tribe which includes local friends who are passionate about the longleaf pine ecosystem. Because I was in San Antonio, I missed the Opening Reception for “Palustris” and missed meeting with this tribe. However, I did get to visit the exhibit earlier this week. It is so fun to walk into an art gallery and see how all the art work is displayed. The combination of pottery, mixed-media, photography, drawings, poetry and an art quilt works well with this theme. The earthy colors are warm and comforting. I am so honored to part of this exhibit and love being part of this tribe.

PALUSTRIS: Celebrating Longleaf Through the Arts
Arts Council of Moore County
Campbell House Galleries
Southern Pines, NC 28387

Exhibit Dates: April 6-27, 2018
Opening Reception: April 6 from 6 to 8p
Gallery Hours: Weekdays / 9a to 5p
Weekend Dates:
Saturday, April 14 (10a to 4p) – So. Pines House & Garden Tour
Saturday, April 21 (10a to 3p) – Party for the Pine
Saturday, April 21 (4-8p) – After-Party for Party for the Pine

Honoring this pine

I’m so excited! In just a couple days PALUSTRIS: Celebrating Longleaf Through the Arts opens at Campbell House Galleries (Apr 6 – see details below). The exhibit’s name pays homage to the longleaf pine ecosystem. Pinus palustris is the Latin name (genus/species) for the longleaf pine tree which is native to the Southeastern United States.

This exhibit includes the work of Brady Beck, Linda Dalton Pottery, Sharon Ferguson, Janette Hopper, Diana Russ, and Caroline Young. My newest artwork “Longleaf Pinecone” will also be part of this exhibit. Each of the artists in this exhibit were invited to participate because we share our passion for the the longleaf pine forest through our art.

In addition to the honor of being selected to be in this exhibit, I’m also very excited about the theme. The entire month of April will be filled with activities which pay tribute to the natural community in which I live. In conjunction with the exhibit, there will be the Southern Pines House & Garden Tour (April 14) and the much loved Party for the Pine (on Earth Day, April 21) presented by NC State Park’s Weymouth Woods – Sandhills Nature Preserve. The Party for the Pines celebrates the oldest recorded longleaf pine tree, which turns 470 years old this year. How cool is that!

If you’re in the area, I hope you get a chance to stop by and see the exhibit or attend one of the other events honoring this pine.

PALUSTRIS: Celebrating Longleaf Through the Arts
Arts Council of Moore County
Campbell House Galleries
Southern Pines, NC 28387

Creative souls hopping

Just a couple more days and it will be April. Although, spring officially arrived last week, its still a bit cool in my neck of the woods. This has definitely been a brutal weather year for most of us. The forecast here today is finally including temperatures in the normal range with sunshine (another missing element to our spring this year).

The good thing about the yucky weather this past month, is that I’m not tempted to be outside very much. This presents me with more studio time, a plus given that I’m busy creating new artwork for a solo show at Page-Walker in Cary, NC this fall (stay tuned for details).

Another advantage to spring is more sunlight. I’m definitely more motivated to work later in the day when the sun is out in the evening. Yay! for more motivation and studio time!

Dreary days have me moving slow and sunny days seem to provide me with motivation. Have you notice your creativity levels change with the weather? I say, enough with the yucky weather lets get our creative souls hopping.

See my art:

Palustris: Celebrating Longleaf Through the Arts
April 6-27, 2018
Opening Reception: Friday April 6th, 6-8pm

Campbell House Galleries
Southern Pines, NC 28387

Celebrate longleaf through the arts

Most of the time I work alone. Except for a very few successful artists, I think most of us do find ourselves wearing all the hats in our businesses. Besides creating art, we are responsible for scheduling, advertising and promoting ourselves. It can be very challenging to manage time and resources, but it also can be very rewarding to know that our success (or lack of) is the product of your own hard work.

The reality is art is a business. You need to know about marketing, press releases, and managing money. Now with social media, there’s an even bigger challenge of learning how to use the Internet as a promotional tool. Unless you can afford to hire someone to do all this for you, you won’t get far ignoring the options.

With all the online activity I’ve been focused on lately, it was a nice surprise to see a old fashioned paper postcard with my art on it. What a nice break for my to-do list to have someone else create this and so nice to see something so well done. It made me proud to be participating in this upcoming exhibit, Palustris: Celebrating Longleaf Through the Arts .

This exhibit is also rewarding for a more personal reason. It represents my life living in North Carolina. I arrived here knowing nothing of this sandy landscape. I went to grad-school to become a biologist and worked with endangered species which live in these sandhills. And now, as an artist, I am sharing this knowledge through my art and helping educate people about the fragile natural communities in which we live. Several of the exhibiting artists are also my friends. We share the same appreciation for the longleaf pine ecosystem. I am honored to have been invited to participate and also appreciate the efforts of those tasked to produce and market this event. If you have the time, come visit and help us celebrate longleaf through the arts.

Palustris: Celebrating Longleaf Through the Arts
April 6-27, 2018
Opening Reception: Friday April 6th, 6-8pm

Campbell House Galleries
Southern Pines, NC 28387