Waterfalls

Thank you for this challenge. Being a non-art school person, I have learned so much from participating.

My favorite techniques seem to be mostly all fusing and this is definitely FUSED and fast. I am in the midst of three other challenges but wanted to try this one.

My sewing skills have not caught up to my fusing skills but I think it does show the use of curves to define distance and depth.

It is about 10 x 12. It was fun. Comments always welcome.

Carol

Sea Ranch, California

Nightride and Sunrise

Nightride and Sunrise...a curvelinear abstract 11"x14"

The background was cut in pieces from a black and white 'curvelinear' fabric, then black bias strips stitched between the pieces. I must have cut a million little tiny pieces (OK, maybe a slight exageration, LOL ) of holographic metallics, fancy fabrics etc., whatever scraps I had from previous endeavors...I have plenty of those! I fused all the little square in a square bits, hand stitched with gold metallic and applied lots of Swarovski crystals. I appliqued it to a black backing, quilted it then stretched it on an 11x14 gallery wrapped frame.

I had a great time with this one Janice...Thanks for the challenge. I have already designed 5 more small pieces in this series (although I am seriously considering doing this one again only LARGE) . I want to try to use a different technique in each one if possible.

Your comments are gratefully recieved...

Cherie

Challenge 54 - Curvilinear Perspective

Challenge #54 February 2011/due March 5

Guest Hostess: Janice Paine Dawes

Theme or Technique: Use curvilinear perspective to create an art quilt by your favorite technique.

Design Concept: When we think of perspective we think of straight lines that recede until they merge at a point. The easiest way to think of this is to visualize a road that goes into the distance until the two sides of the road merge into a single point. But what about curved lines? Can you use curves to show perspective and depth? If you look at Celtic designs they are primarily curved lines. The meander and converge on the surface so that you see depth in the design.

Some of you are into Zentangles. These designs fit this concept.

I will give you a great website that describes what this is. I particularly love the way this concept helps your design look natural and organic whether it is an abstract or realistic.

What it is: http://tinyurl.com/49e3uog

Examples of Artists:

http://www.altontobey.com/testcurv.html

http://www.curvedsurfaces.com/

http://tinyurl.com/4kznsof

Fiber art examples:

http://www.ellinlarimer.com/Pages/G1Curvilinear.html

http://davidwalker.us/Pages/QG_IntheBeginningSeries.html

http://www.physics.ohio-state.edu/~palmer/Quilts/00quilts.htm

http://tinyurl.com/4hglaq6

other examples in nature, architecture, fine crafts:

http://tinyurl.com/4us6fc5

http://www.photographyontherun.com/content/binary/Cactus1010599b.jpg

http://www.donporrittsilver.co.uk/

http://tinyurl.com/4z36tgo

http://www.pbase.com/webcam709/image/53041983

http://tinyurl.com/4n9vslg

http://www.architecture-page.com/go/projects/k-office__2

Your Challenge: After studying the concept and maybe having a light bulb moment, create an art quilt using your choice of technique. Because of our medium, you can employ the use of your quilting lines to further the curved look of your piece. This one is wide open so you can incorporate what you know and do best into the challenge. Have fun, I look forward to more great pieces from this group.

Teapot, Fruit, and Shadows

I don't know if this fits the challenge or not. I worked from a photo, and I haven't done any quilting yet on the teapot.

I'm not sure how to get a three-dimensional effect on it, but I am happy with my shadows. This was a good challenge.

Tangled Tulips

Tangled Tulips, 10" x 10"

This is my second try at publishing. First one got wiped off the screen when I must have hit a wrong button.  This is also my second try at this challenge.  After spending too too too much time on my first effort, I finally decided to donate it to my local guild for a guild auction next fall.  

This time I decided to try a tangle. I like to draw them on paper.  However, stitching them is another story.    I also had a problem with paint spreading where I didn't want it too.   Just glad it is done.   Not really happy with it. Yet, "we learn by doing".  If I hadn't tried I would have failed before I had begun.  One way or another, I always learn a LOT from these challenges.   Glad to be in this group.

His Dream

27 1/2" x 21"

A while back, my husband had a dream which involved a piece that I had made, very 3-dimensional and realistic though he did not know how I had done it. He gave me a written text of the dream, and that became my inspiration.

The yellow house came from a photo which I found on-line by entering "yellow house" (with permission from the woman who posted it).

From the dream story: "... the dream scene appears before me as a piece of artwork! It shows a large tree on the right side whose branches, covered with red and green leaves, protrude out from the surface of the work. ... A narrow yellow brick road runs from the upper right to the lower left of the image. There is a small yellow house on the far side of the road."

The tree is actually a separate piece, attached to the front of the background.

Late, but at least before the next challenge! Comments appreciated.

Au Pear

I have been under the weather these past couple of weeks and was not able to do what I wanted in this challenge. I came up with this simple piece because it was fast and easy and didn't take a lot of time. I just did not have the energy to do a lot. This piece is fused and has raw edges. This is not yet quilted and any suggestions for this would be greatly appreciated. I wasn't quite sure how to do this without taking away from the three dimensional look of the piece.

Floating in my Head - Concentration

This is my first finished piece since kne surgery three months ago. Narcotic addled brain sort of did this one. I am not a drawing artist so this abstract called to me. it reminds me of my brain cells trying to get it back together again. Concentration is the name of the game.

I cut strips wrong, ran out of fabric and many other strange little things came and went during this process. I am happy that I did it because I think my brain is beginning to focus again and I have two new knees to stand on.

Comments welcome

Carol Tackett

Sea Ranch, California

It is 23" x 23"

Different Points of Views

Scanned in an optical illusion in Make the Cut software and cut fabric with the Cricut.

I am unsure about how to quilt it..suggestions are most appreciated.

16x20

Meena

Challenge 53 Table for Two

I had no time to make a piece this week so I'm posting one I made last spring. It's about 26 by 32" or so. This is one of our favorite places to have coffee outdoors, so I took a photo and used the photo as a pattern to make this piece from fabric. It was labor intensive and certainly couldn't have done it in a week! Pieces are fused, highlighted with paint when needed, then quilted. It was challenging to create the shadows on the table and chairs, and this is what I settled on. I took artistic license and changed the chair colors to red since the originals are teal and that blended in too much with the blue walls and greenery. Thanks in advance for any comments. I've enjoyed hosting this challenge even though I wasn't sure I could pull it off, and thankful to all who participated! Chris Predd

Tulips on a Table

What a fun challenge! This is the first time I have tried to work in this fashion and it was exciting to try. I started with a sketch of some tulips I had made years ago. Then folded a ribbon bow and laid it on a table. Then a did a new sketch of the tulips with the bow and colored it in with colored pencils until I had the shading correct. Finally, I fused solid pieces of fabric onto the background and shaded them with thread painting (a first for me) and colored pencil. Will I need to use a fixative on the pencil? Last, I layered and quilted the piece. I'm looking forward to trying this process again -- and welcome your comments!

What's This Window Doing Here?

Size: 21.5" wide x 24" high, longest side is 11"

This is close to life size.
I was thrilled when I read this challenge, because I am particularly interested in realism and dimensionality. Trompe d'oeil has always fascinated me. I knew I wanted to participate. Had I been left to my own devices, I would probably still be wondering what to do for the challenge. But I told my husband about it and right away, he came up with the perfect idea, one of the windows in our log cabin. So I took a bunch of photos and went to work to create a pattern.
This quilt is made using commercial fabrics and applique. There is no painting or photo transfer involved. I used a method I use for almost all of my pictorial work (landscapes, flowers and architectural quilts), Upside Down Applique. I studied the photo carefully and emphasized light and shadows and contrast, which to me are key elements in creating the illusion of three dimensional space.
Comments/critiques welcome.

"Got You" and "Vitamin C"

The left quilt was not chosen for this year's pet challenge but seemed to fit the current challenge. A close up photo of my cat was printed onto freezer-paper-backed-cotton that had been prepared with two layers of Golden’s “Digital Grounds”. The cat’s head, front leg and the brightest areas of her fur were then heavily thread-painted. To increase the shadows surrounding the cat, the mini floral background quilt was constructed separately using fusible appliqué. The mini quilt was folded before attaching it and the thread-painted cat to a base layer of muslin. Finally, the entire piece was heavily quilted. The selective thread painting, dimensional folding and background quilting were combined to move the cat visually and dimensionally further into the foreground

For this week's challenge, the right quilt, I used fused commercial and hand dyed fabric pieces to make the orange, blueberries and beet tops and added thread painting and minimal quilting to add dimension.

Thank you again for another great challenge.

Comments appreciated Both pieces are 12" X 12"

....and then we cracked open the Tequila

Here is my quilt for challenge 53. I painted the fabric with setacolor paints prior to cutting each piece and fusing it down. The wine bottles are heavily thread painted. The shadow was made from black tulle and the background and shadows are stippled. I figured "Seven Empty Wine Bottles" as a boring title, so I named it "....and then we cracked open the Tequila", going for humor. Comments are welcome. Thanks for a fun challenge - making fabric look highly realistic is very difficult to do. It measures 18 1/2" x 23".

new beginning

I have used this piece for two challenges - this one and the the Haiku group. I hand dyed the background fabric, Painted the egg and shadows, thread painted some of the shadows, felted the clouds, and once I got a chance to get into it I had a great time doing this challenge. Thank you for the inspirations.

Pat Havey.

Blue Jean Hang-Up

While realism and shading are important characteristics of trompe l'oeil, just as critical - IMHO - is the element of scale. After all, if the artist truly wants to fool the viewer into thinking they are seeing something three dimensional, the portrayed object needs to be close to life size. "Blue Jean Hang-Up" is 14" wide x 21" high, determined by the actual size of the door paneling I used as my model. There is quite a bit of quilting already completed although it is not really obvious because it follows the lines of the image. I want to do more freehand quilting, particularly on the door panels, but it won't happen until I can get to town next week and get some properly colored thread. Thanks for a really fun challenge! Comments are welcome, as always.

Challenge # 53

Boy was I happy when I saw this challenge for Feb. The past two have been way out of my comfort zone. Educational but out of my zone. I have worked in this manner for quite some time so was glad for this breather.

Almost all of my work starts with inspiration from a photograph. This one was taken by my husband in NY. I chose a commercial grass fabric for the background and used hand-dyed fabrics for the cone flowers. After I placed and fused the flowers to my satisfaction I painted over them to get depth. I used Tsukineko inks diluted with Aloe jell. I've found that that gives me much more control over the ink's flow. I free motion quilted grass in the background and enhanced the flower with thread. This piece finished out at 11" x 11" but I may mat with an 8 x 10. Comments are appreciated

Ch. 53, Mesa Verde

I choose Mesa Verde as my theme for this month's challenge on depth.  For those who have visited Mesa Verde, you will know that the dwellings are built into the side of steep canyon walls.  This view is from across the canyon, showing the land in the foreground, and the land above the cliff dwellings on the other side of the canyon.

This is an applique, size 17 1/2" x 18 1/2".  Materials used are commercial fabrics, dye sticks for shading, and a fabric marker to outline the dwellings.  It is not yet quilted, as I haven't decided if it will stand alone, or be joined to more scenes of the area. I still have several ideas I'd like to try.

Thank you, in advance, for your comments.

Challenge 53

As a quilting artist I loved this challenge, I have done portraits in the past - my Granddaughter at 13- with some fair results. (of course she thought it was embarrassing) However 3D was a new path for me. I started with a photo. I thread painted, used pigmented acrylic ink, fabric paint, her hair is recycled threads and yarn. This is a self portrait, which was taken in my sewing room. If you look closely ,my sewing machine, Beryl, is in the back ground.

I am happy with the results, I always travel to a different rhythm, I am hoping this comes close to "Trompe L'Oeil".

Imagination is the power of forming mental images of what is not present:) What a wonderful thing.
Quilting In Kentucky

Susan Ward

http://artquiltssusanpi.blogspot.com/

Peek Hole on a Winter world

Since realism is my thing I really got excited about this challenge. While looking over the links for this site I happened to remember a picture I had drawn several years ago and surprisingly was able to grab the correct sketch book even. But I was surprised at just how many 'several years ago' was. Seems I drew it in 1980! Still worked... So I took a photo of the pencil drawing and then printed it onto an 8" x 10" piece of fabric. The 3 faces weren't as dramatic in black and white so I used colored pencils to give their skin and shirts some color. I didn't want to overdo since they were to be in the background. When quilting the piece I did very little on the faces themselves just outlining their features.
I found the perfect piece of fabric for the frosty window but had very little left so I fused it and began cutting pieces to fit the windows. Since frost seems to go every which way on a window anyhow this worked out perfectly. I'd thought maybe doing a log cabin but then felt the brown would make the piece too dark so opted for modern white siding. Next were the pine branches, and yes, all those pine needles were individually cut from left-over green fabrics from other projects. Then, since I love birds, I put a lovely little White-crowned Sparrow on a branch for the father and sons to look at. The shadows are all thread painted. It's 15 1/2" x 17". I think it met the criteria.

I've included a photo of the drawing I did originally for comparison.