July 5, 2018
Inspiration
Where does an artist find ideas? This is a central question
for anyone making art. This past year my quilts have been mostly inspired by
nature, especially trees. Last winter I was walking in the woods when a ray of
sun fell upon a branch with dead birch leaves clinging to it. The leaves shone
as on fire. It was an image that stayed with me for a long time. When I walk in
the woods the trees assert themselves but in between this riot of lines is
happening. I like the idea of quilting something that is not the main
attraction. This quilt for the Explorations exhibit was really difficult to
compose. I turned to Chinese painting for compositional ideas. Once I got
started I needed to go back into the woods to see the shapes of real leaves,
not the schematic notion of a leaf. So, the quilt becomes an amalgam of real,
abstract, art historical and felt experience.
