Studio Classes

I have it good. I have a loving family who is supportive and patient and I get to work time with some of the most wonderful people in the world. I have a passion for creating artwork and a place in which to pursue that passion. 

The family - never complains about take-out dinners and is used to a pretty messy house. We're slowly working on getting the kids to pick up their own stuff. I have an id that particular quest will not end until their stuff moves out along with them. And I just won't talk about complaints about dinners I actually cook.

Those people I get to work with? Students! And the ideal students at that. They are there because they really want to be there. They are inquisitive, talented, and open to what they are taught.  Even if they don't admit to being any of those three things - they are. I always learn so much from them as well.

The space I have to create art in is a blessing. I'm next to the main living area so that I can hear and see what is going on with the kids. I can look out the window and see them when they are playing outside. The space perfect for me to freely create whatever my brain can put together.

In a few weeks I get to combine the last two - students - studio! (The family will be gently kept elsewhere.) Students will have the opportunity to come to my home and my studio  in Cary, North Carolina, and lean, play, and create for two days. 

Thursday April 8th: Surface Design Sampler Platter

It's truly a little taste of everything and one of the funnest classes I teach. We dip into techniques such as printing, stamp carving, stenciling, photo transfer, thermofax screen printing, and foiling! Oops! I almost forgot beadwork. Elizabeth and Ellen both took this class at the Virginia Quilt Celebration in 2008 - the fabric says it all!

Friday April 9th: The Forgotten Fabrics and Screen Printing

There are some wonderfully fun things you can do with synthetic fabrics (gasp!) Disperse dyes are completely different than Procion dyes, and totally fun to work with.

The screen printing we'll do this day is very free, fast, and fun. We'll use regular full sized screens in some very interesting and  improvisational ways.

There are still a few spots available. If you are interested in joining us please contact me at Lyric (at) pobox.com.

Artist Spotlight part 3: Melanie Testa - process

The past two weeks I've enjoyed introducing you to a favorite artist of mine, Melanie Testa. Today I'd like to introduce you to her artwork. Together we'll learn a little more about her process.


Lyric: I've seen just a bit of your visual journaling and it is just as lovely as your artwork. How do sketching and drawing help you in your textile work? Why did you choose textiles rather than a more traditional media?

Melanie: My journals are so import to me that I can't imagine not keeping them. I draw inspiration for stamps, marks, actual artwork, they help me to remain focused creatively. Just today, I met up with a friend and we went to the Met to draw, I feel so alive when I am looking at and evaluating what I see. When the line looks like what I am trying to draw, it is such a thrill. I can't take that for granted! But even though I utilize my journals and sometimes even share them when I write articles, the journals are private, they feel intensely personal to me.

As for why I work in cloth? I could not have it any other way. I just tried to imagine myself as an oil painter. I need the ragged edge, the dye, the stamps, the sewing machine.

L: I am fascinated by your juxtaposition of symbols and words with imagery from nature. How do you go about choosing which images to combine? How did you come upon the process of layering images with sheers?

M: Working with sheers came about as a result of journaling. I came to a place where I found my journals held more artistic focus and intention than my quilt art, but my quilt art was more important to me! So I evaluated the difference in approach and technique. I had been using tracing paper in my journals, I would trace a drawing from one page onto tracing paper, paint around and over the tracing, then glue that onto another painted page. The transparency is what held sway. So I figured out cloth equivalents to my favorite techniques. Silk organza became tracing paper and could be dyed with Procion MX dyes.

I started using words in my art because I was working with a man who used words in his paintings but I could not stand how he did it! I started using text and symbols because I knew there had to be a better approach. The words ought to merge with and become one with the piece almost as though in pentimento. As for using nature in my work, I find great solace in all things natural. 

L: Do you work from a plan or do you improvise as you go?

M: I like to plan loosely. Right now I just started a series if 20 Common Birds in Decline. I am working on an image of an Evening Grosbeak. the drawing of the bird needs to be perfected before I begin because the artwork is only as good as your original drawing. But the background and the collaged elements are not in the original drawing. I like to leave as much as possible to chance.

L: What is it about birds that draws you to use them so much in your artwork?

M: When I was a girl, I wanted to be a bird, to be able to flit, watch and leave by taking flight! I began bonding with birds when I was a teenager, my father had bought a bird feeder and a Roger Torey Peterson identification book and we began putting names to shapes and colorings. As an adult, I started keeping my own feeder, then bought binoculars, and now study and read all I can. Right now, I am an armchair bird watcher! Simply? The shiny sparkle of light in a birds eye bowls me over, I can't resist it. 

L: Your use of stitching is so well integrated into the composition of your work. Do you begin with your stitched lines in mind or do those ideas come afterwards.

M: I do loosely plan the images used in my work. As I print, paint and stamp, ideas will float past and reveal themselves, but it is only when I get to the sewing machine that I can listen to and enact a plan for the stitch.

L: If you went to a desert island for a week and could only take a shoebox of art supplies, what would it contain?

My backpack is about the size of a shoebox and often contains, scrap, batting, needles, thread, embroidery floss and beads, a journal and a small box of paints, one pencil, two pens (Pilot t500 and a Pentel Pocketbrush) and a niji water brush. My wallet can be left behind to accommodate more cloth, perferably hand dyed dupioni, my current cloth crush. :)

So dear readers, are you as in love with Melly's work as I am? Her process fascinates me and I've enjoyed studying it and sharing with with you.

I've finished the 5x7 piece from the ginkgo fabric that Melanie sent to me. Next week I'll tally up all of the comments on the four posts featuring her. Yes, you can leave a comment on each post and be counted four times!

I'll throw the lot into a random number generator (or have one of the kidlets shout out a number between so and so) and the lucky winner will be sent this lovely little piece of art. It is 5x7 and made with the beautiful piece of organza printed by Melanie. I do believe that she is posting the piece she made with the fabric I sent her on her blog this week as well.

The Goddess of the Last Minute Feels Rejected

The very first person to befriend me when our family spent a lovely two years in Chicago was the wonderfully witty Robbi Eklow. On my very first visit to the area she picked me up for a few hours of bead hunting and laughter and I've counted her as a friend ever since. I have enjoyed following her career as an artist and author and highly recommend her latest book, "Goddess of the Last Minute."

One of my all-time favorite writings of hers is her response to the rejection letters we all receive. She has graciously permitted me to repost it in it's entirety for you pleasure. Pull it up next time you receive a rejection and you'll be smiling again in no time!

What if quilt shows offered you the chance to write your own acceptance/rejection letter? Or what if they wrote letters saying what they REALLY meant, instead of those nice ones that usually say how hard it was to choose just a few quilts out of all the excellent ones that were sent to them?

Here are a few of my offerings:

• Your work has been accepted into our quilt show, please peel yourself off the ceiling at the earliest convenience.

• Your work has been accepted into our quilt show, please follow the enclosed directions for shipping it to us. And thanks for the box of homemade cookies. The jury was impressed.

• Your work has NOT been accepted into our quilt show, please proceed to the nearest quart of Mint Chocolate chip icecream and dig in.

• Your work is fabulous, we can't believe we didn't notice this before and have you in our quilt show every year. In the meantime, we are looking forward to receiving your current entry and possibly putting it on the cover of our book.

• We declined to accept your work in this year's our quilt show, due to the butt headedness of our jury. Although we could not convince them to recant, we have decided never to have them again, and next time will ask them what they think of your work BEFORE we invite them to jury.

• We're sorry, we cannot accept your work into our quilt show this year. In fact, we doubt we'll ever accept your work into our quilt show. Perhaps you should consider learning to operate a pottery wheel. We're keeping your slides in an effort to prevent you from inflicting your poor taste on another jury.

• We are declining your quilt entry this year. Whatever made you think we would consider a quilt using puce and chartruce in the same quilt? We are enclosing a free coupon for a color class at your local community college.

• Puleeze! Your work looks just like (insert famous quilter's name here). Haven't you had an original idea in the last ten years? Not that (insert famous quilter's name here) has, but that's beside the point.

• We are so sorry to have declined to accept your work into this year's quilt show. Your work is so incredibly amazing, the workmanship divine, NOTHING else submitted can stand up to it, why the WHOLE show would have looked shabby compared to your work. Since we do not want to hurt the rest of the artist's feelings, we have decided not to show them up by including your work.

• Dear Mrs. Eklow, even though technically, your husband's 1966 Oldsmobile Toronado DOES qualify as a quilt (three layers:metal, upholstery and padding, held together by bolts) we feel that the shipping costs of the traveling show would be prohibitive. We did consider using the trunk as a storage area for the REST of the show, but we can't find a garage big enough to house the car, and it's reported gas mileage of 5 gallons to the mile makes that idea inefficient. That said, we do admire your efforts to find a way to get rid of the vehicle once and for all without hurting your husband's feelings.

• Dear Mrs. Robbi Joy Eklow: Unfortunately for you, we aren't taking your quilt/quilts into our show this year. Mrs. Robbi Joy Eklow, we had over 750 submittals, but we can only show 25 quilts. However we do appreciate the $40 entry fee you sent, please send another $50 if you'd like a ticket to the opening night. We need to cover our expenses. Mrs. Robbi Joy Eklow your work was one of the outstanding entrees, and we're not just saying that even though this is obviously a form letter.

• Dear Mrs. Eklow, we can't accept your quilts into our multimedia show this year. We prefer the avant guarde work we've been showing for the past 40 years and will continue to reserve our exhibition space for those artists who've shown their work for that period of time. And this year, we'd appreciate it if you'd decline to send a rebuttal letter to our rejection letter. We don't care if you think those fabric blankets of yours deserve to hang next to or in place of the lovely oil paintings of dogs playing poker.

• Please return the enclosed postcard along with a check for $50 to receive a ticket to the opening night reception. We know you'd like nothing better than to spend an evening fawning over the artists who DID make it into our fabulous show. Drinks will start at 9pm, $10 for wine, $15 for margaritas. And we've got those cute little hotdogs floating in barbeque sauce. $3

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Showing Your Work: part 2 - rejection

It's going to happen sooner or later. The envelope or the Email that says, "sorry - out of luck" arrives in your mail box. You followed all of the directions in the prospectus to the letter. You dutifully researched the venue, past shows, the jurors. You have the best possible images of your artwork and yes, you did send in your best work. And still - you don't get in.

Malachi's Promise
rejected from half of the shows entered  (mostly abstract art gallery type shows)
received a "Best of Show" at a local quilt show

What does it mean? Why do you feel like a failure? I discussed the jury process and the many reasons work is rejected from shows in my last post on this topic in case you missed it. What being rejected does NOT mean is that you are a failure as an artist. If you go into a blue funk because you did not get into a show you need to examine why. Do you think everyone will reject your work if it did not get in to one show? Do you think that all of your work is unworthy?

Failure can be a friend if you are willing to learn from it. Easier said than done but if you can learn to see failure as one more step towards success your life will be easier - and happier. And you will be growing!

First off - are you entering venues appropriate for your work? I'll talk more about this next week. A cutting edge and provocative piece might not be appropriate for a traditional quilt show and a traditional Baltimore Album isn't going to make it in a Soho gallery.

Spill
never juried into a show quilt but shown in several art galleries

Also, the higher the quality of the show that you enter, the more likely it is that you will be rejected simply because of the higher number of applicants. Quilt National is what many of us Art Quilters call "our favorite charity." It has an overwhelming number of entries compared to the number of Artworks that it can accept. It is also one of the most respected showcases of the Quilt as Fine Art that there is. A hardcover catalog is published every year and the show travels to respected venues. It is still on my list of "hope to get in before I die" shows so I continue to send in work and take my chances.

Second - are you pinning all of your hopes on one piece? As a serious artist you want to be continually creating. You need to build up a body of work. (I'm preaching to myself here!) If you think this one piece is the best you will ever make than you have stopped progressing. Try to create enough work that you can have several pieces out there at the same time if entering shows is a path you wish to follow.

Third - take an objective look at both your photographs and your work. If you have someone whose opinion you trust, ask them for a critique. Use this as an opportunity to learn and to improve. The work just might be fantastic and the photography impeccable. It still never hurts to examine and to find areas for improvement.

Here is a lovely blog post about entering shows by Elizabeth Barton. It includes a conversation with a juror about why some pieces were accepted in a nationally juried show. Well worth reading.

Circle 3

juried in to only one show - where it sold

Tomorrow morning I'll give you a treat - Robbi Eklow's wonderfully witty answer to rejection letters.

Art + Quilt: Quilt Indy Group

One of the things I love about textiles as a medium is that for some reason (perhaps our quilting heritage) textile artists are social beings. The Quilt Indy Group gets together on a regular basis and works through design exercises. I was honored that they chose Art + Quilt as their textbook of choice for this year and simply thrilled that they invited me to be a fly on the wall of their cyber-meeting space.

In this exercise patterned fabrics are photocopied and used to create compositions that focus entirely on the visual texture of the surface. Remember that actual texture is the way something feels. Visual texture is the pattern on the surface.

Here are two exercises by Carol. I love how she uses similar shapes but plays with the scale of the texture. I'm thinking she might have used the copier to reduce or enlarge the scale of the pattern and perhaps to even reverse it. Can you see how the scale of the visual patterns are set each other off?

The next two pieces by Lorie show how adding texture and pattern to the background can help to ground the piece.

Mezzie shows an even more dramatic example of how adding texture to the background can make the composition much more interesting. She's used the exact same composition for each piece but one is much more dramatic than the other.

Notice here how Von has not only changed the scale of the background in his two pieces but has overlapped the shapes. What happens to the textures and the composition in general when the elements touch each other? I think it gives the eye a path to follow.

Thanks to the Quilt Indy Group for sharing their work! Leave a comment and tell us what you have learned from seeing their exercises. If you are doing the exercises and wish to be featured by all means let me know!

Artist Spotlight part 2: Inspired to Quilt

I told you last week how much I admired Melanie Testa as an artist and as a friend. This week I want to introduce you to her book, "Inspired To Quilt." The title is appropriate as her book is truly inspiring.

I purchased my copy from her at the International Quilt Festival in Houston last October and spent a lovely and very early morning flight home perusing it. I blogged about that morning here. That page also shows a little sketch copied out of her book.

In the interest of full disclosure, Melanie and I were both contracted to write our books through Quilting Arts at about the same time. Now the gushing - I must say that the books they have put out recently through Interweave Press are beautifully laid out. I love, love, love the layout and the general lush and beautiful look of "Inspired To Quilt."

Now I'm one of those people who will get completely involved in the imagery of a book like this. I "read' my magazines by flipping through from the back and absorbing the pictures. I love good photography and great layouts and graphic design. And I am completely enchanted by Melanie's artwork.

Let me tell you now about some of the more in-depth reasons why I love this book and think you will too. Melanie's gentle and encouraging nature comes shining through in her writing. (Yes, I DID finally read it.) I love that she urges the reader to experiment and play as they try out each of the  processes in this technique oriented book.

There are step by step instructions for working with dye, for printmaking, stamping, stenciling, and dye painting. Melanie walks you through her process one layer and page at a time. She shows you how she begins with sketched ideas, creates layers of cloth and imagery in cottons and sheers and stitching. You are carefully guided through her construction process as images are built and cloth is added and taken away and embellished until the composition is completed. She goes even further to the back of the textile art, explaining finishing techniques and edge finishes.

If you are a project person there is something in "Inspired To Quilt" for you too. I think Melanie's Pretty Purses are absolutely sweet. Other projects include a Sewing Holster, Merit Badges, and Artists Trading Cards.

So, I strongly encourage you to get a copy of this book. Take a look at the Inspired to Quilt FaceBook Fan Page to read an ongoing discussion about the book and to join in reader challenges.  

And finally, remember that both Melaine and I are working on a textile postcard to give away to lucky commenters on our blogs. She is introducing me to her readers on her blog if you want to pop over and say hello there too.  Any comments on my posts that feature Melanie are eligible for the drawingso go back and leave a comment for last week and pop in the next two weeks as well.

Do you want to hear something amazing? We both sent each other dyed and printed fabric - without telling each other what it was and guess what!?! We both sent fabric printed with the SAME thing - ginkgo leaves. Now THAT is serendipity!

Showing Your Work: part 1 - the jury process

It takes a lot of courage to put your work in front of a judge or juror, or so I've been told. I've done it many a time and paid good money for the privilege. Why? Because I want people to see my work. Some artists might create their work entirely for their own pleasure, happy to let the art live in a closet forever, but I haven't met them yet. Most of us have a message to send with our art - even if that message is as simple as "smile."

Do I find it scary to submit to the jury process? No - but not because I think my art is great or because I always get into the show. This year I've been accepted to two out of four of the shows I've entered. Part of my "courage" is having seen enough jury processes that I know what is involved. Part of it is that I am able to emotionally let go of my work once it's done. Let me explain.

In a juried show artists submit either images or the actual artwork, and a juror chooses which out of all the submissions will be in the actual exhibit. Jurors are usually professionals in the art field; established artists, gallery owners, professors, curators.

You fill out a form, you pay a fee. It's not unreasonable. It costs money to advertise the show, to staff the exhibit, to pay the juror. Most of the shows I've worked with just barely break even.

What happens on the other end? Imaging receiving hundreds of files, some of which might actually have followed the guidelines in the prospectus. You've already answered what feels like hundreds of Email questions and helped people format their files or simply restated what is already written in the entry guidelines.

All of the entries are now organized into a slide presentation and you have prepared numbered sheets for the jurors. The most common process that I've seen goes like this: A full and detail image for each entry is shown on the screen either side by side or one after the other. Most of the time the jurors will be shown a quick run through of all of the entries so that they can get an idea of what they are looking at. If the show has a theme the jurors might be told what it is and to please try to find pieces that adhere in some way to that unifying idea. Sometimes the jurors are given free reign to choose whatever pieces they think will make a wonderful exhibit.

The next run through is usually silent but takes more time. Each juror looks carefully at each piece and simply writes down "yes" or "no." At the end of this run the jurors compare notes and any piece that has unanimous rejections are, well, rejected. Harsh? Not really. There are many, many reasons pieces are rejected that have nothing to do with the quality of that particular piece. 

I'm sure the most frustrating reason for rejection is poor photography. When the jurors cannot see the artwork clearly it is impossible to judge it. Having anything at all showing in the background of the photograph is distracting. I remember on photograph in particular where the piece was pinned to a piece of bright purple foam core set on an easel. You could see half the living room and the jurors couldn't tell if the purple was part of the quilt or not. Truly, if you present your work in the the most professional manner possible it will make a huge difference. Your work IS your best effort is it not?

Now things get difficult. After the rejected images are deleted from the pool the jurors once again view the pool, this time either meticulously rating each piece, or conversing with their colleagues to come to an agreement on the final selections. There is a good bit of cajoling, campaigning, and compromising that goes on here.

Reasons for rejection at this stage? Numerous. The theme could be "Trees" and they reject the artwork depicting fishes and candy canes. The pool of entries might lean towards abstract and one photo-realistic piece, no matter how spectacular, just isn't going to create a cohesive show. Perhaps these particular jurors love politically challenging pieces whereas another set of jurors might shy away from them.

You see, it really is simply the luck of the draw. There are so many factors that go in to the process that there really is no guarantee that you will be accepted into a show even if your work is truly wonderful. There are things you can do to raise your chances of being accepted.

1 - Research the show - what type of artwork has been exhibited in past shows?
2 - Research the juror - find out what other shows the juror has put together and what they look like. What kind of artwork does the juror make if he or she is an artist.
3 - Take the best possible photographs of your work possible. Neutral backgrounds. Good light. Focused!
4 - Follow the instructions on the prospectus to the letter! Do not expect the organizers to resize your images or accept late entries.

Here is a short list of articles and a book that can help you with the tasks above.

Shoot That Quilt by Andy Baird and Holly Knott
A wonderful tutorial on how to digitally photograph your quilt including plans for building your own nifty light stands. Yes, it can be done!

Digital Essentials by Gloria Hansen

This wonderful book clearly explains how to prepare your digital files for entry.

Judge and Jury: what to expect when entering art shows by Annie Strack
A very good overview of the entire process and a bit of a tutorial on how to choose your shows and maximize your chances of acceptance.

A list of art-quilt shows to enter compiled by yours truly
Listed by entry date, includes title, website/prospectus, show dates and shipping windows.

And finally - cut the apron strings. Let your babies grow up and venture out into the world on their own. Make enough work that all your hopes and dreams are not riding on one piece. Put your heart and soul into the work while you are creating it and then release it. A rejection of your work from a show is NOT the same as a rejection of you as an artist.

Look for more on this topic over the next month or two. I'd love to hear your experiences, opinions, and suggestions. Have you been involved in a jury process that worked differently? How do you think it can be improved?