Monday, January 31, 2011
Chocolate Boxes
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Abstract 20"x23"
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Challenge 53 - Trompe L'oeil
Guest Hostess: Chris Predd of LaPorte IN and Anna Maria Island, FL
Design Concept: Trompe L’oeil (pronounced "tromp loy")
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The art technique of trompe l'oeil involves creation of art that gives the visual illusion that an item is three dimensional. Its literal meaning is to 'deceive the eye'. A full history of this technique can be found on wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trompe-l%27œil and at the AskArt website http://tinyurl.com/4s9wy8u
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Art Examples:
Public artist, John Pugh does incredible wall art using this technique, which is also referred to as art that will "fool the eye". His art is so real that you feel like you could walk into the scene, or that the people are actually sitting there. Here's a link to see some of his work: http://tinyurl.com/27forlx
The Trompe l’Oeil Artists Society website has links to many artists who depict everyday objects by this technique. They appear so real that you believe you could lift them off the paper. Scroll down through the different artists there and link to their web sites to see some incredible work. http://www.trompeartists.com/
Here is a link for a mural artist that creates realistic imagery on walls: http://www.paint-your-world.com/adults.php
3D Street art is amazing: http://tinyurl.com/58ah9b
Here's a link to this technique done by drawing with pencil http://www.jdhillberry.com/tromp_thumbpage.htm
Then there’s the tricking of the eye with things of wood that look like other things (like quilts) http://www.gofraser.com/index10.htm
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Quilt Examples:
Esterita Austin is quilter whose work could fit into this definition http://esteritaaustin.com/gallerymain.htm
Joan Sowada is a master at this: http://www.joansowada.com/gallery.html
as is David Taylor http://www.davidtaylorquilts.com/gallery.html
and Cynthia English http://www.englanddesign.com/quilt-gallery,
Fiber art - http://tinyurl.com/4aopyb5
Susan Brittingham' perspective work is also very realistic: http://sbrittingham.freeservers.com/architectural.htm
Barbara McKie using photo imagery http://mckieart.com/Pages/thumnail_pgs/new_quilts.html
More quilts: http://www.annettekennedy.com/index.html http://www.melissafrankeldesigns.com/gallery.htm
The internet is full of other links on this technique, simply Google trompe l'oeil and you will find countless other visuals and discussions of this topic.
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The Challenge: Create an art quilt using the trompe l'oeil technique, preferably depicting an everyday object or group of objects. The goal is to make it appear so realistic by paying attention to angles and shadows it creates in the position and location it is in. Depict it in its actual size or the correct proportions. Or, create a scene, structures, or landscape using the same technique. Obviously using realistic colors and textures is important in this challenge.
Have fun! Chris Predd
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Challenge #51 and #52
Sunday, January 09, 2011
Challenge 52 River
It is not quilted or faced yet. Yesterday I finally had to accept that something is seriously wrong with my sewing machine and it will have to be repaired so this would be ridiculously late if I waited for its return.
Any comments will be appreciated.
Friday, January 07, 2011
Challenge 52: "Border Crossings"
I couldn't figure out how to make the blocks of color seem "blended," so I gave up on that and tried to sort of confuse the eye instead. I had to REALLY fight myself not to quilt this piece to death (my usual MO) because of the "flat texture" look of color fields. Since there's not a lot of quilting, some of the fabric looks a little "loose" (I'm not really sure how to describe it--you know that slight wrinkly effect you get between quilting lines?) so I'm going to starch and iron it as soon as I find my spray starch (long story).
Your comments are greatly appreciated! Michele
Wednesday, January 05, 2011
Late and Still Uncertain!
This has been a great challenge, in an area I knew nothing about. There have been so many examples and so much to study about color fields and I still, like many others, don't feel I have a true understanding of color field. However, that also gives us the opportunity to interpret the challenge with our best guess!
I am so late and also so unfinished with this, but I'm hoping for a few helpful hints from you wonderful critique-ers. My leaves are semi-sheer and fused and I usually would just plop on some yarns and maybe some crystals, quilt the jeepers out of it and call it good! I think I want to aim at a little more sophistication this time, though. My first dilemna is that I can't even decide if I want it round or square!
I added a detail of the leaves, too, to show a little of the overlapping sheers and the little bit of sewing I have added already.
You have all done such inspiring work on this challenge...thanks for helping me to expand myself!
Fast Friday Fabric Challene 52
stars we gaze upon, that hang in the sky and seem to stare down on us?
I wonder do they know us, who we are,what we do?
"Other Worlds 2" started with the wrong side of an upholsters scrap. I
painted the fabric with a faux metal and patina glaze. Using fabric
paints and pigmented acrylic ink I followed my vision toward a portion
of the universe. ( strictly using my imagination) Free motion
embroidery with the help of some copper fibers ( which I was able to melt) completed my challenge 52. Comments would be appreciated.
This was an excellent challenge . Working with the color fields while
attempting to create an abstract with depth and reason. TY Betty great choice for the challenge:)
Susan Ward
Quilting in Kentucky
Sunset on Emerald Lake
Sunday, January 02, 2011
Challenge #52 Color Field
Color Field #1-1000
Saturday, January 01, 2011
Color Field Your Guess is as Good as Mine
The definition I took was one put out in Art History Basics, stating that color field paintings were abstract, not based on nature, treat the canvas or paper as a "field" of vision without a central focus; emphasize the flatness of the surface, and reveal the artists emotional state of mine or his or her expression.
One of the things I found interesting is that it could be "amorphous or clearly geometric, but is about the tension created by overlapping and interacting areas of flat color."
This sort of bothered me....How can one show have the overlapping and softness without using brushwork? And that then became my challenge. How to translate this into quilting. Obviously, I couldn't piece as it would create the sharp edge.
That's when I hit upon using Angelina and foils. The coppery/gold area you see in the center "stripe" and the white-ish stripe are both areas which have been foiled, one with copper foil and the other with a opalescent one I think of as being gasoline on water. I then put pieces of Angelina down (the pink and the sort of reddish on the far left. The red is much redder in this light that it is in reality as I mixed a bright plum with "rusty nail."
The next problem was how to quilt it....If color field painting were all about flatness, then I didn't really want to have any texture, but quilting is ALL about texture. Even when we are quilting a piece and trying to make it flat, there is texture. So, I used a copper metallic thread and a pearl Sliver thread by Sulky for the quilting in the colored areas. The blue, I just quilted in long wavy lines in a blue rayon.
This is WAY out of the box for me as I don't usually do abstracts. I liked how the angelina and the foil gave the colors and soft edges similar to brushwork.
The piece measures 33 1/4" high x 19" wide. I don't have a name for it and would be happy to take suggestions as well as critiques.
Lisa Quintana aka Michigoose
Color Field
I used Setacolor with a little pearlescent paint added on this gorgeous Haroati Silk. I love it the way it is and will probably keep it whole.
Challenge 52 - "Spinal Dance"
This quilt is totally out of my realm. I rather like the begining rough, but felt it was too small. First I added paint to the workshop piece to try and 'square it up' for quilting. I still felt it was too small, so I added irregular borders. This looked to stark. So I painted and painted and painted some more.
Today I quilted. Not totally happy with the result. However, I am thrilled to have this finished. My first quilt of 2011.
FFFC 52 "Endless Summer"
I have titled my adventure "Endless Summer" which is what I am wishing for in the subzero temperatures of Spokane, WA. I chose the colors of blue (for the sky), green (for the plants), and yellow (for the sun). I pulled out a piece of white silk and used my dyes to paint it, which is another first for me. Once the foundation was done, I struggled with what to add to it. I have been reading some posts about lutradur and it's transparency, so I decided to paint it with the same colors. After it was dry, I sliced it and diced it and then rearranged the pieces into a grid pattern. I think that if I had diluted my dyes more, the grid would have blended more into the background, but I didn't really consider this until everything was already put together. I then quilted it with vines and leaves, and yes, those are the sun's rays peeking out of the squares! I echo quilted around the grid and am thinking that I will add more rays on the outside of the grid. I believe that it loosely fits what I understand to be the colorfield style. It is okay if I didn't hit it on all levels, because I love my piece and it brightened my otherwise very cool day!
Colors
I began to be very worried that, once again, I would not have time to complete the challenge I hosted. But here we go. This photograph does not represent the actual colors very well. It was interesting to work through this process - the study, the planning, the reality check about what you can actually accomplish in a week - both more and less than I thought. After many iterations of oh so wonderful plans, I decided to work with some handdyes I created in October. There are actually six fabrics from a two color gradation from fuschia to yellow with the addition of the high contrast black. I like the decisions I made about the placement of colors. I fear that it is a boring piece even though it is what I was after and I actually like it - the simplicity, the colors, the contrast.
Any comments or suggestions for improvement are very welcome.
Challenge 52 "Undulating Colors", Pam Clark
Series of Twos
9 X 14
Thank you, Betty, for introducing us to the technique and history of Color Fields. I enjoyed all your examples and those some of the members provided. This challenge has produced a great variety of quilts/techniques and I suspect a good learning experience for most, if not all of us. I’m not sure I met the challenge but I had a good time working with shapes and bright colors. Comments/Critiques are welcomed. Thanks, Pam
Four Spirits
Then, of course, the hard part is waiting for the snow to melt! It was a pretty muddy mess when it was all melted, but I rinsed and washed and dried, and this is what appeared. I think it's color field!
I immediately saw 4 spirit figures (or dancers...). It's not quilted .... I might just put it on stretcher bars and hang it.
Comments of course, are welcome!
Wendy in very cold Flagstaff on New Year's Eve