18 x 20"
This quilt is based on the last line of Blindness by Jose Saramago (the book won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1998 and is about the best and worst of people in a situation of horror).
It is constructed using hand dyed & commercial fabrics, cotton & metallic thread. The background is pieced and the "scene" is fused, then heavily quilted. There may be something missing but I don't know what it is...do you? Would appreciate comments!
Cynthia
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6 comments:
Great value and contrast usage. With the colors and the way you used the thread it does indeed depict a possible horrific situation such as a large city fire or reminiscent of the terror of the Twin Towers. I can't see anything I'd change. Love it!
I agree with Jan. I read this book a long time ago, and you have certainly captured the erie feeling the story conveys. I love your color contrast and the pieced background. Very effective!
Cherie
Cynthia,
The quilting is amazing.
I like the way you used low contrast colors for the background and high contrast in the foreground. Very effective. Also the yellow against the purple tones really jumps out.
I really like the curviness of the buildings and the variety of the window shapes. Not having read the book though, it suggests to me overcrowding in the city.
As much as I love all the various elements and the colors, there is too much tension for me in the image to live with every day, although as a work of art it's great! It certainly depicts horrors. I'd have to tip it on its side so the buildings looked like waving flags if it were hanging in my house (can you tell I don't like overcrowding?)
If there is something missing, I can't tell what it is. Maybe some cast shadows in front of the buildings, that's a really bright light behind them.
laura
Hi Cynthia - This work is jarring, jangling, jazzy - probably some other "J" words I can't think of right now. The subtle pieced background sets the stage for a feeling of contained chaos. The buildings look as if they are trying to bump each other out of the way for more room.
This is not a pretty little piece to hang in a bedroom - by golly, I think it must be ART. While I enjoy pretty little pieces, I love to see something that talks to me - even if I am disturbed by what is has to say. Thanks for sharing this interesting work.
Roberta
I absolutely love this work and was immediately drawn to it when I saw it in the photo album on the Yahoo site. Although I have not read the book, I am now sufficiently intrigued by it that I may pick it up. Your quilt conveys chaos and angst and tension. I love your use of color and shape, very effective. As far as anything to change, I think it is a wonderful work as is, but you could consider not having the line where the buildings meet the pavement in the curve as it is and instead have the buildings meet the pavement in varying places (so it's not a perfect curve) OR you could make variations in the pavement itself (e.g. make "waves" in the pavement by cutting up the fabric or whatever). Just a couple of thoughts, but you really don't need to change anything at all. By the way, do I see McTavishing in the quilting of the background? Very cool!
Thanks, everyone for your comments! Deb and Laura, I might add some shadows or something to create some variation at the base of the buildings...that's something I didn't notice, but it is too "even". Deb, the background quilting isn't McTavishing, it's more like Diane Gaudinsky's stacked bananas.
Cynthia
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