52 Journal Pieces, October 2011

Week 5: Chaos

Experimentation with my Janome needle felting machine

I attached it to plastic canvas to create peaks and valleys

Week 6: Leaf

Inspired by a leaf I found on a Sunday walk

I made a rubbing of the leaf using Shiva Paintstiks

and painted over it with Jacquard textile paints

Week 7: Giraffes & Beads

Inspired by the article Collaged Fabric Panels by Mary Hettmansperger

in Quilting Arts magazine, Feb/March 2008

Week 8: Circles & Squares

Inspired by a technique I once saw Judy Coates Perez demonstrate

using Jacquard textile paints on cotton batting.

The batting had been painted years ago. I used black felt for the background.

Week 9: Adrian's birthday

Inspired by my husband's b-day & the Out of the toolbox article on Pentel gel roller

for fabric by Maria Elkins in Quilting Arts magazine, Oct/Nov 2011.

52 Journal Pieces, September 2011

On August 27th I turned 39.

As a b-day gift to myself I decided to embark on an artistic journey

to explore what 40 means to me by creating weekly 8” x 10”

art quilts leading up to my 40th b-day.

The journey started with inspiration from The Uncommon Quilter: Small Art Quilts Created With Paper, Plastic, Fiber, and Surface Design book by Jeanne Williamson.

As Jeanne states in her book it, “is not about making a perfectly crafted traditional quilt.

Rather, it is about the process of quilt and art making,

with the added benefit of changing your perspective as an artist.”

I invited other artists to join me on this journey, and 20 artists from around the country accepted the invitation.

We share and encourage each other via a Yahoo group.

The rules are simple:

Pick a size.

No starting over on a piece.

This is about play and experimentation, not aesthetics.

No limits to technique or materials.

Here are my pieces from September:

Journal Piece Week 1

Made from thrift store shirt scraps I cut up in Oct 2010

Journal Piece Week 2 

Inspired by a picture of a painting I liked

Week 2 close up

Journal Piece Week 3

Inspired by a pillow in a Crate & Barrel catalogue

Journal Piece Week 4

Inspired by my feelings to not reproduce

Faces of Change

In December of 2008 I made this piece in response to
the election of the first African American President.

Based on the iconic image from his campaign.

 This lead to a second piece of Abraham Lincoln infused with the word FREE.

I used colonial reproduction fabrics and a matte thread.

 Then added Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., thus creating Faces of Change.

MLK was created with batiks and is infused with the word FAIR.

It has been my great pleasure to work on these pieces

and I hope to conintue to include important historical figures in the future.

Mosaic workshop

I had the pleasure of participating in an educators' workshop at Marwen the first week in July.

We made traditional mosaics and stepping stones for a garden using cement and tile scraps.

I sprinkled mine with small green beads.

Here is an experimental piece with a variety of materials including, beads, metal,

fake gemstones, wood & plastic beads, buttons, and glass tiles

Here are some pieces before adding grout

My neighbor's piece

Another for her son

A few of the stepping stones created during the day

Another teacher's

Adding grout makes a big difference

I learned a variety of things about creating and teaching mosaics,

primarily that if I was to teach mosaics in class,

I would stick to the plain cheap one color tiles like in the Be Nice piece above.

You can find a nice variety of colors in these tiles and it is much easier to grout and clean.

Unlike this experimental piece below.

Nothing's Gonna Change My World

This is the third piece I made for the September 11th Ten Year Anniversary exhibition I am putting together with The FIber Artists for Hope group.

It is inspired by the Beatle's song, Across The Universe.

It includes hand stitching and sequin embellishments.

The background is an image I manipulated in Photoshop

and printed on prepared fabric from Joann's.

Remembering the Twin Towers

On September 10, 2000 I took a leap of faith and told my boyfriend I loved him.

We were sitting on a bench watching speed boats zoom by on the Hudson River.

He said, “Thank you.” 

On September 11, 2002 as we rode the 1 train uptown to attend the 1 year memorial in Central Park, we discussed marriage. I had always been opposed to the traditional concept of a man proposing and said, “What if we, as a couple, decided to get married?” He replied “ok.”

Several months later we became husband and wife.

We had moved in together about a week before the attacks. He had lived in an area just across the street from the WTC. We spent our courtship in the shadow of those two majestic towers. I would ride the R train from Brooklyn to the Cortland stop. I’d rise from the underground and be greeted by them. I would walk towards them, into them, through them, to reach my love.

We discovered each other as we explored a new part of the city, later named Ground Zero. We fell madly in love and the towers witnessed this, including my declaration of love.

This is how I wish to remember them, a magical time when my heart fully came alive.

My husband and I visited Ground Zero in July during a trip to see family.

Here is the subway station I used to exit. There is Ground Zero in the background.

 Here is a view of the Freedom Tower from near where he used to live.

It was an emotional visit for us.

Remembering September 11th

This is a piece I made in response to the assassination of Osama Bin Laden,

it is called, Not Enough Tears.

 Here is a close up

My husband told me the news right after I woke, my mind could barely process the news. I listened to reports on the radio. I listened as co-workers discussed it at lunch, and I listened as my teenage students made ignorant comments and assumptions about conspiracy theories. I did not discuss it, because I could not. I did not know what to say, how to feel, what to think.

Once I was in the safety of my own home, I watched a video of the president’s announcement. While my mind might not have known what to think, my heart brought tears. I sat and wept. But for what? I was so confused. I tried to process my feelings.

I am fortunate to say that as a New Yorker, I did not lose a loved one, but I know many who have. I was a third year teacher in Brooklyn. I peaked out of my classroom window on that faithful day, and in one moment saw the Twin Towers, and in next they were gone.

While the death of OBL is a victory for America, it reminds me of all we lost, the lives, the innocence, the sense of safety. His single death does not bring me closure, it reignites my heartbreak. As I sat weeping all by myself, I realized, there will never be enough tears to mourn the tragic events of September 11th.

I walked around my house, I needed to do something, to sew, to piece swatches of fabric together. To feel the fabric in my hands, to hear the hum of my sewing machine. I needed to make something. I start with blue fabric, blue for tears. I piece them together, 1 inch squares. I included some orange and yellow at the top to represent hope. We must always have hope. Over the next 6 days I complete the piece. I stitched out the towers in the middle with grey thread. I hand sewed beads to represent tears. I added a black border to represent grief.

Do I feel better? No, I doubt I ever will.

This piece will be part of an exhibit by The Fiber Artists of Hope to honor the ten-year anniversary of September 11th. All pieces will be 9” x 11”.