Opening Reception at the PA Arts Experience Gallery

We had a great opening reception for “Sue Reno - Recent Fiber Works” and “Karen Paust - Edge of the Meadow” at the PA Arts Experience Gallery this past Friday evening.  Here I am striking a pose with my newly completed In Dreams I Saw the Colors Change, left, and In Dreams I Climbed the Cliffs.

The Gallery is on the ground floor of the beautifully restored historic Marketview Arts Building in downtown York, PA.

It has good display spaces and excellent lighting, and I am very pleased with how well my work looks hanging there.  Above is Ginger, left, and Silk Mill #1, right.  Ginger is just glowing on this wall, thanks to all the Mysore silks I used in it--I received a lot of compliments and questions about it. 

I was fortunate in being scheduled for the same month as the talented Karen Paust. Her intricate nature themed beadworks and woodland paintings were a pleasure to examine, and we received many comments on the synergy between our bodies of work.  Above is Bleeding Heart and a display of Karen’s work.

Here is Karen, on the left, next to her incredible beadwork neckpiece on the dress form, and myself, posing in front of my Plume Poppy.  We did not plan to coordinate our outfits!  Plume Poppy looks pretty magnificent in this space--it’s a large work, and needs room to be seen at full advantage.

And here is my Columbine, with another of Karen’s neckpieces. 

I hope you enjoyed this sampling of the exhibit.  It will be up through December 3--hours are here.  I am giving an Artist’s Talk this Saturday, November 9th at 11:00 a.m.  If you are in the area I hope you consider stopping by.  You can go to Central Market afterwards:

Exhibit at the PA Arts Experience Gallery

I would like to extend an invitation to visit the Pennsylvania Arts Experience Gallery, 37 West Philadelphia St., York, PA, for the November exhibit.  I will be exhibiting Recent Works, including some new pieces shown for the first time, and Karen Paust will be showing “Edge of the Meadow”. 

The opening reception is this coming Friday, November 1st, from 5:30 - 9:00 p.m., in conjunction with York’s First Fridays event.  If you can’t make it then, perhaps you can come for my Artist Talk on Saturday, November 9th at 11:00 a.m.

The Pennsylvania Arts Experience is a non-profit arts organization promoting the arts along the scenic river valleys of southeastern Pennsylvania,  committed to establishing an internationally recognized arts destination.  I’ve been a member since its inception years ago, and am very pleased to be exhibiting in our beautiful gallery space in the renovated historic Marketview Arts Building.

Article re: AQS Lancaster

I'm featured in an article in today's local paper about the AQS show coming to Lancaster, PA this week.  My quilt, Ginger, is illustrated, and I'm quoted as part of an excellent exposition on the international character of the quilt world today.  There's also a brief video clip of me in my studio.  Read all about it here.

Enjoy!

“Ginger” acceptance into AQS Lancaster

More excellent exhibition news --Ginger has been accepted into the AQS Lancaster show, to be held March 13-16, 2013 at the Lancaster County Convention Center, Lancaster, PA.

This work features a silk cyantotype of an ornamental ginger leaf in the center panel.  The patchwork is pieced entirely of silks, brought back from several epic journeys to India.  It really must be seen in person to appreciate it fully, as all the high-quality silks have a luster and depth that is hard to capture photographically.  I am delighted to have this opportunity to exhibit it in my hometown.

The Lancaster County Convention Center is the former Watt & Shand building, near and dear to my creative soul as the subject of my 10 quilt series.  See it as part of my Structures set on my website, or track it back here on my blog.


And as always, thanks for reading and commenting.  Maybe I'll see you at the show!

“Ginger” featured in Machine Quilting Unlimited

I’m thrilled to share that my art quilt Ginger is featured in the July/August 2012 issue of Machine Quilting Unlimited magazine.  It’s on the back page, in their “Jaw Dropper” feature, with a full image and a close up showing the intensive machine stitching.  Ginger features a cyanotype on silk for the center panel, with patchwork made entirely of Mysore silks from India, and measures 60” x 60”. 

"Ginger"

You can read about its inspiration and design on my previous blog post here. 

But it’s not all about me!  My advance copy--it will be on news stands very soon--is chock full of the wonderful blend of beauty, inspiration, and information you can use that has become Machine Quilting Unlimited’s trademark.  There really is something here for everyone with an interest in machine quilting, both as craft practice and as an artistic expression.  I'm particularly enjoying the article on my friend Judith Trager’s Grand Canyon Series in this issue.


Look for it in the stores or in your mailbox!  And as always, thanks for reading and commenting.

New Work - Ginger

I’m excited to unveil my latest major work, “Ginger”.  It’s a response to my experiences visiting and living in India. I was inspired by the colors, the diverse culture, and the energy of this complex country that I love.  It’s a place where chaos and order can both exist seemingly simultaneously in time and space.


The center image is a cyanotype print on silk of Hedychium coronarium, the ornamental white ginger, which is native to India and grown widely around the world.  The piecework is done entirely in silks woven in Mysore state, and brought back on various trips taken by myself, my husband, and my daughter.  It’s magnificent silk, mostly woven in the “shot” technique where the warp and weft are different colors.  It shimmers and shines and the colors shift depending on your point of view.  The intricate stitching I did serves to add a layer of dimension and further accentuate the color shifts. 


I’ve done several posts on this one as a work-in-progress; you can read them here, here, and here.  I started it almost a year ago, proving, as if I needed proof, that this art making thing is not always a linear progression.  I’m glad I took the time, and gave the process the space it needed, for it to turn out just like this.  Now to find a place to exhibit it, for it really needs to be seen in person!  It's larg-ish, at 60" x 60".

If you are new here, I’ve got a series of travelogue posts about my recent travels in India, along with vintage photos from my sojourn in the 70’s, here.  And thanks, as always, for reading and commenting.

Ginger in Progress - Update 3

I finished the quilting and removed the basting on “Ginger” this weekend.  It looks radiant! The top is made entirely from Indian silks, with a cyanotype on silk for the center image, and it just glows:


The back is looking very cool as well, you can see all the patterning from my free-motion quilting:


For the uninitiated, free-motion quilting means using the sewing machine as a drawing tool, and the thread becomes the line.  I disengage the feed dogs, the mechanism that normally moves fabric through the machine, and move the fabric with my hands.  It’s a learned skill that becomes becomes honed with practice, a bit like riding a bike or any other activity that requires hand/eye coordination.  The trick is to get the right speed and “flow” so the the design seems natural.  I find it helps to look a bit ahead of where I’m at and to stay focused on where I’m going.  This patterning, which I use a lot in my work,  involves creating a box, sewing into it, then stitching back out.  It’s very meditative, and I make it all up as I go along.

Next up is rinsing  and drying the work, which will create even more texture and sheen, and then a binding to finish off the edges.  I am working like a madwoman on multiple projects and deadlines right now, so I will fit this in where I can.  I’m very happy with how it’s turned out thus far.

You can see the previous posts on this work here and here, or click on Ginger under updates in the right sidebar. Many thanks for reading and commenting!

Ginger in Progress

Remember “Ginger”?  All those luscious silks?  I started it earlier in the year, before my trip to India, and got the top pieced together before I left.  I’m back at work on it now, and am enjoying the process greatly.  I’ve got it all basted:

Yes, that’s hand basting, and a lot of it.  Did you know there is such a thing as basting thread?  It’s made from short staple cotton.  “Staple” is a measure of the length of the individual fibers.  Long staple cotton, like Pima, or Egyptian types, commands a premium because it is smooth and luxurious and holds up well over time.  Basting thread is just the opposite.  It holds up well enough for the time it takes to do the quilting, but when it’s time to remove it, the short fibers break readily and pull out of the quilt without a lot of resistance, making the job much easier.

I’m trying something new and using a wool batt.  I want to maximize the amount of reflection I can get from the silks, so I want each stitch to make a good sized dimple in the quilt.  Wool batting has more loft than cotton--the fibers are springier.  And so far, it’s been quite pleasant to work with, with a nice feel and a good response under the needle.

I’m making good progress on quilting the leaf image in the center panel.  I’ve got a lot of projects on my metaphorical plate all of a sudden, so by necessity I am skipping around a bit, but this one is such a pleasure I’m doing my best to find time to work on it. 

Saved by the silks - "Ginger" in progress

There's nothing like a stack of luscious silks to propel the right side of the brain into gear.  As I prep logistically and philosophically for my upcoming trip to India, I was searching for artistic expression but feeling a bit blocked, and frustrated by several false starts.  I don't usually dither, but was falling victim to overthinking and undue pressure to perform.  I do my best work when I am having fun and letting things flow, so I turned to my old standby, simply sewing things together and seeing what happens.

I brought out my cherished stash of silks from Mysore, India, including a few lengths from my student days and an assortment my husband brought back from a business trip years ago.  These are old friends, used in many pieces and now down to their last cherished bits, but since they have been supplemented by a new batch, and especially since I am travelling to do my own replenishing, I cut and sewed fearlessly.  As an exercise in abstract optics it was getting interesting, but I like imagery in my work.

Six years ago I participated in a textile art book round robin.  Part of the great pleasure of a collaborative project, aside from the artwork, is the people you get to know.  One of the book artists, Sandra B., expressed an interest in my cyanotype process, and out of the goodness of her heart sent me a box full of foliage from her Florida garden.  I was able to make prints (in late November--don't try this as home, kids!) from some of the delights she sent me, including this ginger leaf, above.  I was immersed in other projects at the time, and the tropical foliage prints got set aside until just the right moment, which was now. 

A perfect pairing for the silk blocks, and just like that I have an exciting new project underway.  Further sewing of blocks led to this placement audition, emphasizing value:

Already it's exploding!  Stay tuned as things progress.

Administrative note:  I've turned off the "Captcha" feature on the the comments, in the hopes that it will make commenting easier, especially from a mobile device.  I will continue to monitor comments to prevent spam, so there might be a slight delay before yours shows up.  And as always, thanks so much for reading - and commenting!