For several years I have been fascinated with what is happening on the horizon opposite where the big show is going on. At sunrise I like to look west and at sunset I like to look east. The way the light acts, the way the existing part of the day is dissolving just makes me grin. I was especially taken by an exhibition I saw years ago in Memphis by artist Burton Callicott. This piece of his is entitled Moonrise Naucet Beach. I always liked that image but only recently realized it was exactly the kind of image I was loving. The moon is a full moon rising just after sunset. The day is still receeding and the colorations above the horizon are slowly changing to darkness. The only reason we are looking that direction is that the moon is on the rise. But the quietness, the stillness and the subtleness prevail. So I have been wanting to do a piece that captures that feel.
Introducing Magic Time for "Celebrating Normalcy". For those of you who haven't been following me for long-- Magic Time is the point at which I first put a quilt up on the design wall. To me this is where it breathes its first breath of life and "becomes"a piece of art. Until this point it exists only in my mind. As you can see, the blocks are not yet assembled nor joined- they are simply stuck to the flannel design wall in the expected final layout.
Today I managed to get the top half pieced into rows. I am not trying to copy Callicott's piece but am using his coloration of strata as a reference. I want this piece to be VERY peaceful. Like looking over the ocean on a very cloudy day, where you can't quite tell where the water ends and the sky begins. This won't be QUITE that subtle. I opted to keep the line of land that separates the sky from the water.
I can tell that I have matured somewhat as an artist in that, although at this point the piece isn't going exactly the direction I originally envisioned, I am comfortable enough with my technical skills and vision to have a reasonable expectation that I'll be able to draw it closer to my vision in the remaining steps. This could be the stitching, possible layering, surface design options--who knows?
Celebrating Normalcy--What's with the name? As anyone who has been through a major event can tell you-- whether a medical crisis or a major weather event, a terrorist bombing, an earthquake or similar-- that when life begins to have a few elements of normalcy once again, hope can blossom and be very exciting. We can find that our attention can once again be distracted from the "EVENT" and we can look around and see beauty again. For me, that is symbolized by being able to see the opposite horizon following a sunset or sunrise.
Last year's ice storm, Mom's periodic medical crises, this year's heavy snow-- all qualify as times to recover from.
Since I am not sure where this piece will be taking me, I invite you along to discover it with me.
So you can be oriented- each bull's eye block (4 pieces that comprise a circle) is 8 inches across before assembling. The finished piece will approximate 56" tall and 63" wide.
This is the first piece in over a year where I have dyed fabrics specific to the piece and each block is built for it. Last year each piece I worked on( except one) was made up of leftovers from previous work. While my income has been sucking air thus far this year, I am hopeful that it will be a more prosperous year. That calls for creation!!!!
Let's enjoy the view.
It's SOOO quiet!!!! This is the finished newest piece-- Celebrating Normalcy. If you scan down to some previous posts you'll get the concept in full detail. But the short version is this piece celebrates the return to the mundane after a period of crisis. It is the sigh, the exhale, the relief of not having to think in crisis mode. The image is a stylized version of a moonrise over a calm bay. The back is silk screened with examples of daily mundacity--walking the dog, feeding the cat, unloading the dishwasher, taking a luxurious bath, sleeping in your own bed--all activities that, when life is normal, have very little significance. But when they return following a crisis- medical or otherwise, they are worth a little celebratory jig.
