(You’re gonna want to scroll down for this one.) So what does all this stuff about sketching have to do with quilting? It prepares you for the single moment that inspiration strikes. I want to make a quilt of a house, a bird, a cup of coffee. I want to make [...]
Posts under ‘Learning from the Masters’
Art a Key to Happy Life for the Aging
Thanks to Alyson over at ArtBizBlog for the heads up on this great NPR story on Aging Artists. I was intrigued enough to read the more detailed summary of the study, and was delighted at the attitude of these artists, who struggled financially but were elated with life and their art.
“Art is what makes [...]
Cool Tools for Your Blog
I’ve got an article in the upcoming issue of Professional Quilter magazine called Developing Your Blog as a Marketing Tool. I love blogging. I get to write daily posts that let readers know a little about me and my work and connect with people not only in my own community, but across the [...]
I’m On Mary Lou’s Blogroll!
I feel like I’ve arrived. Mary Lou Weidman has added me to her blogroll. Wow. I’m so honored. Mary Lou is one of my all-time favorite quilters, not only for her courageous use of bold colors, but also for her gracious and optimistic attitude.
I have all of Mary Lou’s books, and [...]
Making Something Beautiful from Nothing
One of my Christmas gifts to myself is the memoir Eat. Pray. Love. by Elizabeth Gilbert. I’m finding it more entertaining than spiritually uplifting, but one of Elizabeth’s experiences resonated with me and I haven’t been able to forget it. During her stay in Italy, she experiences the Italian notion of l’arte d’arrangiarsi [...]
Learning from the Masters: Faith Ringgold
In my last installment of the “Learning from the Masters” series, I’m profiling Faith Ringgold. One of the first decorating steps I did in my studio when we moved to our current home was to put prints of Faith’s work on the wall above my sewing machine. Faith’s color-infused work speaks to me [...]
Learning from the Masters: Deidre Scherer
The third artist in my “Learning from the Masters” series is Deidre Scherer. Deidre is not a quilter, but an artist who works in fabric and thread. She creates beautifully expressive portraits of our aging seniors, but uses no batting or bindings. In fact, she celebrates the raw edge, both in her [...]
Learning from the Masters: Ruth McDowell
Ruth McDowell is the second quilt master I’m profiling this week in my “Learning from the Masters” series. She is the only quilter whose work I see and consistently say to myself, “I wish I had made that quilt.”
Ruth is well-known for her complex and rich piecing in her art quilts. I admire [...]
Learning from the Masters: Gwen Marston
In my first “Learning from the Master” post, the quilter from whom I’ve learned a great deal is Gwen Marston. First, I admire her attitude, which is perfectionism in quilting is overrated, and you don’t have to suffer to make a beautiful quilt. Gwen learned by copying the masters, Mennonite quilters and [...]
Sunday at the High Museum
Impression, Sunrise (Impression, soleil levant), Claude Monet, (1872/1873). Public domain image courtesy of Wikipedia.
I took the day off on Sunday and went to the High Museum of Art to view their Inspiring Impressionism exhibit. It did not disappoint. Displayed were multiple works by Impressionist greats Claude Monet, Edouard Manet, Paul [...]
