Progress on 2013 Goals

It's hard to believe that we're almost at the middle of March... almost 1/4 of the year is done!  However, with that in mind today, I thought I should review and see how I'm doing on My Goals for the year.

"Best Friends" by Christina Fairley Erickson
Commercial and artist hand-painted cottons, machine applique, machine free-motion quilting

My first goal is to work on finding and defining my artistic voice.  I've outlined several steps to help myself with this.  First, is to work with Gail Harker, of the Gail Harker Center for the Creative Arts.  You might recall some of my previous posts about the fantastic exhibit, Complex Threads, which featured the work of students of Gail.  I'm set for this part of my goal, starting next week when I'll be taking her Experimental Hand Stitch 101 course. This course will complete my 100 level series classes, and I'll be continuing on the path starting in May with Studies in Design and Experimental Hand and Machine Stitch 201 which will meet approximately every 3 months through the end of 2014.  

"Best Friends" detail by Christina Fairley Erickson

Next, I decided to kick up my production to help with defining my artistic voice.  To do this, I've been making my weekly 5 x 7 Challenge piece.  So far, I'm keeping up with this (one week I didn't finish, but then did two in another week.)  I also wanted to do my small art quilt group's challenge every other month.  I've only got a couple weeks to go to finish this and I'm not sure that I'm going to make this one.  The theme of the current Fiber Funster Challenge is "Waiting."  while I have designed a piece, I haven't even started it in production.  Maybe I can get it going this weekend.

Finally, I planned to document my progress in my blog, which I've been doing.  This also has helped me with my second major goal, which is to ramp up my pictorial quilts.  I feel like I've made a lot of progress through the weekly production of 5 x 7 pieces, both with my technical skills and composition.  I do still need to start working on a plan for creating a body of work.  

My third goal has to do with studio organization.  Here I have made some progress, but not enough to be proud of... I am at least working in my studio almost daily, rather than my studio being such a disaster area that I end up pulling my work out into other areas of the house!

My next goals, opening an Etsy shop and working towards a solo show in 2015 are still in the thought process, although I have looked through Etsy and think I can stay on track to open by mid 2013.  Beyond that, I'm on track for completing my piece for the Salsa show (entry due in mid-April).  I haven't yet decided upon my second medium-to-large sized piece to create, although I may go back to my roots and make another horse-themed quilt.  I won a first place (and cash prize!) at an equine art-show two years ago and just received the call for entry for this coming summer. Alternatively, I may shoot for finishing one of my works in progress, such as my Waterfall quilt or Cathedral Visions.  

I'm scratching the final goal, completing a driftwood art sculpture in time to enter in the May show.  Although I love the driftwood art, I'm not having the time to do it as well as my main love, fiber.  

Well, I'm in a bit of overwhelm now, with all that I need to do.  Guess it's time to get back to sewing!

You might also be interested in:

Complex Threads 1

Complex Threads 2

Artistic Goals 2013

2013 Artist 
5 x 7 Challenge

Juggling Many Projects

Between link parties from WIP (work in progress) Wednesdays at Freshly Pieced and Freemotion Fridays on the Freemotion Quilting Project, we've got a great start in generating interest in the 5 x 7 challenge for 2013!

Hand-painted and block-printed fabrics and papers
by Christina

I've been struggling with how to juggle getting a project done while designing and/or conceptualizing one or more others. It's not like I don't do this all the time in my everyday life... What woman doesn't? Even my studio has a minimum of 4-5 things going at a time-some on the design wall, others in various states of completion. But when you come down to a commitment to produce a finished product each week, my stomach gets a bit tight, I wonder if I'll be able to persevere throughout the year, and I feel a bit frantic about wanting to work ahead and get a bunch done, so that if things come up, I won't end up with nothing to show for the week.  But that seems a bit off-target.  After all, the idea is to learn to consistently produce art, right?

Christina's gradation run of sunshine yellow Procion MX dye

So, I'm taking a deep breath and thinking about how I'm going to do my next piece.  I also think that I'll allow myself to work on design ideas in my sketchbook, which I can then decide whether I want to produce in a more finished form at a later date.  But I won't actually have more than the current week and the coming week's projects in any phase of production.

What I'm wondering is what would be the best way to balance getting my "other" projects complete.  After all, I do have other goals for 2013 which I need to make progress on.  I didn't even put in additional time for dyeing and surface design in my goals, nor did I mention any of the pieces I have in various stages of completion, other than a vague mention of "ramping up my pictorial quilts" and having a couple pieces completed to enter in various shows.

As an example, in a little less than two weeks, my small art-quilt group (the Fiber Funsters) has our next meeting where we reveal our second challenge quilt.  (Details about this challenge are posted on my blog post "The Fiber Funsters 10x16 Group Challenge.")  The current challenge is based on the word "Celebrate."  It seemed appropriate for the holiday season and I had hoped to incorporate something which would work both for this theme and "Salsa!" the theme of the CQA Mighty Tieton show coming in early summer.  However, it just didn't really work for me.  I designed a piece using photos from a cathedral door with a chili-pepper wreath on it, but when it was shrunk down to 10" x 16", it just didn't work for me.  I may still create that piece in a larger format for the Salsa show, however.  So, now I'm working on something more abstract and playful with my hand-dyed and painted fabrics.  With time running short, I'm going to have to get a lot of time in behind my sewing machine this weekend!

Hand-painted and block-printed fabrics and papers
by Christina

Realistically, what I'm talking about is time management.  With my background in business, I understand and can get focused when I think about it in this way.  I can schedule my sewing sessions, make a timeline for when I have to get things complete, and have to-do lists for each step of each project.  The main thing is not to get mired down in the daily muck of being run by your plans and schedules.  That, after all, doesn't really allow for free-flowing creativity.  However, it can be very useful for managing showing your artwork and possibly for getting more accomplished (I haven't really tried it for managing my work in the studio.)

How do you manage your time, projects and priorities?  Do you work on one project or many?

You might also be interested in:
Making Fabric
Scope Creep
The Art of Organization

Artistic Goals 2013

Frozen bush from Dec 2008
No snow yet this year!

     I've been working on putting my artistic goals down on paper (or in electrons) for some time now:

•      I defined what's working and what's not in my post "Painfully honest - Where am I Stuck?"
•     I thought through "Questions to Ponder While Writing Your Goals"
•      I structured a challenge to do a weekly small composition in "52 Weeks of Art - A Personal Challenge"
•      And I originally started thinking about "Goals for the Upcoming Year" back in November.

So, the clock is ticking towards midnight (and 2013) and I'm ready to state my goals and intentions, as well as to ask you to respond back to me what you are going to commit to doing.

Goals 2013:

1.      Find and define my artistic voice or style. 

a.      The first way I will work on this is through my work with Gail Harker.  Seeing the work of other students of Gail’s, I am struck with how each student makes artwork that is unique to each of them.  I believe Gail has an incredible skill in teaching her students skills and processes, as well as how to make design decisions, without specifically teaching them to make artwork that is a particular style or that is similar to anything that she herself makes. 

b.      From my previous studies, one of the main things I’ve learned is that one’s artistic voice is found through practice, practice, practice.  To this end I will do the following:

Ø  Make a5” x 7” composition each week, working to enhance both my design and technical skills

Ø  Make a 10” x 16” composition every 2 month as part of the Fiber Funster’s challenge

Ø  Do all the coursework from Gail’s classes with a serious attitude toward excellence

c.       Document my progress in my blog at least weekly (preferably daily) as well as documenting all my work for Gail.

d.  Open the 5" x 7" challenge to anyone who is reading this blog to give others support, encouragement, and critiquing.  

2.      Ramp up my pictorial / representational quilts.

           

What does “ramp up” mean to me? 

a.                  Increase my technical skill/proficiency to a high degree

b.                  Increase my composition skill-how the composition is placed/cropped, color usage, understanding innately and using good design principles with my compositions (balance, unity, contrast, value, movement, focal point, relationship (color, size, value, shape, texture, style, theme), visual bridges/elegant choices, integration.

c.                  Make and execute a plan to develop an intentional body of work that is authentic and expresses meaning to me.   Meaning includes work that expresses my interests, my feelings, and my values.  I will work on exploring meaning through writing about my work on my blog.

Beautiful icicles

3.   Work at increasing my competency at working in a clean and organized studio space.

           

4.     Explore opening my own Etsy storefront to sell my work by July 30, 2013

5.      Work towards my goal of having a solo show by September 2015.

     Steps to have a solo show:

            a.  Minimum of 12 finished pieces reflecting my integrated artistic voice

            b.   Find venues that would consider my work

                  i.    Talk with other textile artists to find out where they've shown

                  ii.   Make a running list of galleries 

                  iii.   Visit galleries and talk with gallery owners

            c.  Increased technical competence

            d.  Continued showing at national and local levels

            e.  Professionally marketing myself as an artist

                  i.     Re-do my artist statement

                  ii.    Update my website

                  iii.   Write out a description of key phrases to describe my work

                  iv.    Write up descriptions & diagrams on how to display my work

                  v.     Write/send out press releases on my shows (build reputation)

                  vi.    Create an artist portfolio

                  vii.   Develop 10 ways to promote my art

             f.   Continue working as CQA Exhibitions co-chairperson through March 2014, to gain knowledge and experience on putting on exhibitions.

Hope you're warm and safe
for the holiday!

6.   Complete at least 1 art quilt or art cloth to enter in the Salsa! show at Mighty Tieton.

7.    Complete at least 1 other medium-large piece and enter it in 1+ shows.

8.     Complete at least 1 driftwood art sculpture to enter in the show in May.

Well, that's my year for you (and a little beyond.)  I'd love your support and comments, as well as hearing what you have planned for the upcoming year!

Hugs and Happiness in the New Year to all of you!

                  

                  

Painfully honest... where am I stuck?

OK, it's time to get down and finish up my goals for 2013... yeah!  But first, that requires me to do a little soul-searching and figure out what I'm doing wrong and right in my artistic life (uh oh.)

Where am I stuck? 

            One area where I’ve made some incremental progress on is in my studio clean-up and organization, however, I’m still stuck to a certain degree with this.  Most times, I find it difficult to get into my studio to work.  In the past, I frequently have had it so disorganized and messy in my studio and my dyeing room that I can't work or I just don't want to go in.  I have so many things I'd like to do that I'm overwhelmed.  I sometimes feel as though I should finish projects I've already started. I don't know whether to consider it a blessing or not, but I have enough space in my home to spread out... so my sewing gets moved out of my studio to our rec-room and the dyeing can also end up there.  Anyone else struggle with being overwhelmed with their stuff and their space?  

            I’m also somewhat stuck with not being certain how much I should be attempting to show, how much time to devote to just increasing technical competence, how much time just creating for my own artistic pleasure versus trying to fit into a show theme, or whether my work as CQA (The Contemporary QuiltArt Association's Exhibitions co-chair will actually serve my artistic career.  I'm not sure whether taking a break from showing will serve me, however.  I think having a full artist résumé looks good to those interested in your art work.    

            Another area in which I’m struggling is in my definition as an artist.  While I’m comfortable with the definition of “fiber artist”, I’m unsure whether I should still focus on making quilts or whether I should or am moving beyond them.  This is a big dilemma for me.  Do I stop doing “quilt” art?  If so, does that mean that I’ve moved beyond CQA (which has become a rather big part of my life at this point.)  I know I love doing embroidery, but does it have even less potential for artistic recognition as art quilts?  If I focus on other areas than quilt art, where would I show?

What is working?

I am feeling like I’m in the process of moving on to the next level in my art.  I’ve increased my technical competence over the last year.  Specifically, I’m much more skilled in machine freehand quilting as well as dyeing.  I’ve gained a lot of knowledge through my working on the CQA Exhibitions.  I have a good strong understanding of color.  I have a strong work ethic and desire to be successful.  This helps me fit in time although I have a lot of demands for my attention... husband, two teen boys, work, CQA exhibitions, SDA (Surface Design Association)  steering committee and small group leader in WA state, and numerous hobbies and passions beyond my fiber art.

One of the thousands of photos I've taken for design inspiration

I’m very excited to have been able to work with Gail Harker this year and to be starting the Level 2 of her diploma program in May 2013.  I've come to recognize that most classes and teachers don't have much more to offer me, unless I need to learn a particular technique, since the majority of classes just teach you to quilt in that particular teacher's style.  The difference with Gail is that she teaches techniques and design in such a way that all of her students end up developing their own style and their work looks uniquely their own.    

Processes I have used/done quite a bit and am comfortable and confident with:

• Sewing, piecing, quilting, free-hand embroidery, machine applique with my Bernina 730
• Fabric painting (using brushes, syringes, spray bottles, stamps, stencils, silkscreens) with Jacquard textile paints and Lumiere and using resists with fabric painting (freezer paper or objects)
• Printing on fabric with ink-jet printer
• Intensive and in depth study of color, including color mixing, making tints/shades/tones, color theory, and color combinations (dyads, equilateral and isosceles triads, tetrads, hexads, monochromatic, analogous, complementary, near-complementary, complementary triads, modified triads, adjacent-complementary tetrads, and analogous complementary color schemes.)
• Highly proficient with Adobe Photoshop CS5 Professional
• Immersion dyeing (Procion MX)
• Multiple dye-baths
• Using different methods to create pattern in immersion dyeing (pole wrap, clamping, bunching, folding, pleating, shibori)
• Making printing blocks from found objects
• Stamping and making my own stamps from found objects
• Stenciling
• Making thermofax screens and silk-screening with them
• Photography (digital SLR) particularly nature scenes and macro photography (See Skagit Skies and Sunshine and Sand)
• Drawing/sketching
• Monoprinting

Technical Skills I need to develop:

 I think there are a lot of skills that I should develop, but I’m not particularly worried about them.  I think as I continue to work with Gail, I will have lots of practice and increase competency over time.  I do, however, feel I need to get more intentional about my design process.  My understanding of design elements while strong, is not necessarily intuitive in my working in fiber art.  I think I often am so driven to get going on a project that I don’t put the thought into it that could make an okay design into something with much more impact.  Or I’m pushing to get something made for a deadline, so I don’t end up with as good an effort as if I were to just be making it for my personal artistic pleasure.

I'm currently working on hand embroidery techniques, which I'm enjoying and expect will work its way into my art pieces, rather than just a samples.

And another.

Although I have a long list of potential topics I could make art about, as well as thousands of images for inspiration, I’m not particularly worried about my being too overwhelmed with possibilities  I feel confident that my work with Gail will help me narrow my focus over time.

More to come:

I'm not 100% certain that I've covered everything in these categories yet, but will revisit and think about it more over the next few days, in case there is anything to add.  I'll look more at my specific successes over 2012 have been as well as my 2013 goals tomorrow.   

I'd love to hear about where you're stuck, what's working for you, and what you feel you need to develop this year in the comments section below!

You might also be interested in:

Questions to Ponder for Writing Your Goals
Goals for the Upcoming Year
The Art of Organization

Defining Myself

While I currently define myself as a "fiber and mixed media artist", I struggle with the definition. I started early on as a seamstress,then as a costume designer. I moved to being a quilter for a short while, then specialized in art quilts. I've played around with many styles, but basically feel my niche is in representational art.

When I started falling in love with making my own fabric, I became a surface designer.  But, I was still pretty wrapped up in using my fabrics in my quilts.  Now, I'm moving even more to embroidery.  Whether it's dense machine embroidery, thread painting, intricate machine quilting, or hand work, stitch seems to give me a tactile grounding that no other medium has for me.  But how do I define myself?  Where does this work fit in?

I know that most shows that are quilt-centered are very strict about their definition of a quilt... 3 layers connected with stitch, often needing to be professionally bound in some way.  If I decide to create a stitched piece and stretch it over a frame or canvas, then it won't qualify.  So the question is, how important is it to me to fit into the categories that show producers have come up with?  Or even, how important is it to me to continue to exhibit?  Is it more important to create and then find the right niche for my creations, rather than creating to fit particular guidelines?

While I don't feel like I have a strong enough discernible style or large enough body of work to go into solo shows, I do enjoy having my work out in front of the public.  The question is, will work that is not formally a "quilt" get accepted into shows?  Do I feel I need to break out of confines of being defined as a quilter?

I don't know that I have the answer for that yet.  Maybe as I work out my goals for the upcoming year, it will become more clear to me.  How do you define yourself?  I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Quick tip for productivity:  I recently found the iPhone app "Evernote".  This is a way to organize all your notes, including Word docs, Adobe Acrobat PDFs, and simple text inputs.  You can also use it online or download a version to your computer, as well.  They all sync together. You can organize notes into notebooks (so I have one notebook for my studio, one for family, one for my blog, etc.) and put as many items within each notebook as you want.  It's a great tool!

Questions to Ponder for Writing Your Goals

OK, I'm going to be sitting down on Sunday with my Eastside SDA (Surface Design Associates) group, which was formed out of our Washington State SDA symposium which I helped plan last year.  This month, our topic is "The Business of Doing Art" and will include goal setting. 

So, I've prepared some questions for us to think about, as we write out our 2013 goals and objectives:

• What skills do you already possess?  What do you do well?
• What could you improve on?  What do you need to learn?
• What sources do you have to learn what I need (books, online, classes, magazine articles, friends, a mentor etc.)
• What are you passionate about? How can you bring some of that passion into your work?
• Are there specific projects that you want to complete?
• Is there a theme or series that you want to investigate in your artwork?
• What professional organizations do you belong to?  What do they do for you and your artistic career?  How can your participation enhance or further your career?  If you don't have any professional organizations that support you as an artist, how could you go about finding one (or more)?
• Do you want to show my work?  What sort of shows or venues?  Are there specific shows or venues you'd like to target?
• Are you organized to show?  What do you need to do to be prepared?  (Examples- how do you track your art, how do find opportunities, what do you need to ship and deliver pieces, do you have specific instructions for hanging and displaying your work?)
• Do you want to sell your work?  What is your plan for getting sales (how would get a gallery to represent you; what sort of person or institution would be interested in the kind of art you make?)
• What is the realistic projection of the number of pieces you will complete this year?
• What additional organization of your studio or workspace do you need to be more productive?
• Do you need additional tools or supplies to create what you want?  What are they?  do you have the funds to purchase them and if not, how will you raise the money?
• What will you do when it gets hard?  How will you regain inspiration or motivation to work in the face of rejection, disinterest, or conflicting priorities?

Tomorrow I'll be at the Viking Good Yule celebration from about noon until 10 pm.  For those who haven't read this before, my 17 year old son is fascinated with Viking culture and at this point is planning to study anthropology and archeology.  So we're going to a big Viking re-enactment celebration and feast.  I finished my "Viking Apron Dress" last night,  from a 10th century design.  It's amazing to me how different Viking culture was from what the stereotypical idea of Vikings is in our society (for instance, they didn't have horned helmets, although they do look pretty fun and impressive!)  I'm sure I'll have some interesting photos to post from that and I'll make sure to get one of my dress as well.  I'll make sure to also have my sketchbook in hand and work on my Salsa! designs for the Mighty Tieton show.  Make it a great day!

Goals for the upcoming year

I find that the time between Thanksgiving and New Years is the perfect time to get a little introspective and to think about what you'd like to accomplish in the coming year.  There are many reasons to take this time and actually write out your goals. 

First, by writing out your goals, you help clarify them to yourself.  Is it more important for me to show in as many shows as I can get into or do I want to pick and choose?  Or do I want to forego a real push for exhibiting this year and work on developing my style and voice in my work?  By looking at where you'd like to be by the end of a particular period of time, you increase your ability to pick actions that will help you get there.

Similarly, if your goals help you pick proper actions, then you reduce "scope creep".  When asked to do something, you can evaluate how it will help you with your goals.  I know it's important to learn to say "No", but it's not always something I'm good at.  So, perhaps if I get really clear on my goals, I'll be more likely to recognize when a request isn't going to help me with the direction I want to go.  When you're busily working towards your goals, you'll find yourself presented with more and more opportunities.  You know the old saying, "If you want to get something done, ask a busy person!"  By focusing on your written goals, you can find keep yourself working towards them, rather than getting distracted by other potentialities.

As part of goal-writing, it's a good idea to come up with a plan to help you accomplish the goal.  While there is plenty of data on the power of just putting the goal down on paper (and even then just sticking the paper away in a drawer somewhere), I personally believe that you get much further towards accomplishing your goal if you have a plan of action to accompany it.  Even if it's just a list of to-do tasks, that will get you on your way.  If you want to go further, you can set objectives to accomplish for each goal, then make timelines, and evaluate what could potentially trip you up in your plan and how to overcome that (aka risk management) if the 'risk' occurs.
 
Ah, this is all sounding a bit dry.  I think it must be time to hit the sewing machine.  Before I do, I thought I'd share a link and a few photos from a fabulous textile tour to Guatemala I took a few years ago with my mother.  The hostess, Priscilla Bianchi, is a Guatemalan quilt artist.  She uses traditional Guatemalan textiles in her amazing quilts.  Tonight I found a book called Arte Textil Guatemalteco- Trabajo de Priscilla Bianchi, or Guatemalan Textile Art- the Work of Priscilla Bianchi online.  It is just beautiful, even if you can't read Spanish, check it out! 

The photos here on today's post are ones which I took when I visited Priscilla's home in Guatemala City in February 2009. 

Scope Creep

Large Unfinished Feltwork at Tieton

Have you ever heard of scope creep?  Sounds like some kind of peeping tom that uses a periscope, doesn't it?  Well, it's actually where the intent and expectations of a project keeps increasing.  Perhaps I just have big ideas... but I'm finding myself being really excited about the prospects of the Tieton exhibition.  For instance, the large felted piece that I mentioned yesterday?  I started thinking about a documentary on Mongolia I'd seen and how they would felt large pieces by pulling the roll behind horses.  Here's a link that has some info on the Mongolian felting tradition, as well as a YouTube video of the steps of the process.  Well, I'm a horsewoman... I recently sold my horse but still ride and know lots of people in the equestrian community.  One of my contacts has a Friesian farm in the Yakima area, not terribly far from Tieton, where they have big beautiful black horses that draw carriages.  Shouldn't be too hard to drag a roll of felt, then, should it?


Will and Teresa Bron with two of their lovely Friesians

I also got to thinking about a fiber group whom I read about in Quilting Arts Magazine (June/July 2012).  They are from the Netherlands and create all sorts of outdoor installations.  You can see some of their work on their Windkracht 10 Blog.  We also have had a wonderfully colorful addition to many of our outdoor spaces here in the Seattle area... yarn bombing.  Just google yarn bomb Seattle images.  Here again, Tieton would be a perfect place to do all sorts of wonderful outdoor fiber art displays.  So, the scope of this exhibition may just be creeping up a bit more.

I'm thinking that it might be too much to ask of our CQA artists to also do the outdoors pieces, so perhaps I'll just write an open call for artists in Washington... that shouldn't be too much extra work, right? 

Tieton would also like to have lecturers and classes available from fiber artists during the show run.  So, I've opened this up to CQA artists as an opportunity, but I may need to open it further, if I don't get enough response.  Well, I suppose I could pull a class together before next May....

Oh, and I'm thrilled that Mighty Tieton, having their own print studio, has offered to make a catalog of the exhibit!  All I need to do is provide high resolution images of all the artwork, artist statements, information on each piece, and write a curators statement.  No problem!

As you can see, it's easy to commit and commit, and then not take time to do your art.  I'm committed to make a piece (or more) for this show.  But as artists we need to weigh out our commitments and look at our overall goals.  I do believe that putting this show on in style will be a positive experience for my artistic career.  But the major sticking point that I struggle with is in making enough art.  Making enough to be good.  Making enough to develop my artistic voice.  Making enough to feel fulfilled.  As I work through my goals for the coming year, I'm looking at committing to making a small art piece (5x7?) each week.  However, I struggle with whether that will stop me from making my larger pieces.  I have a partially-completed quilt (OK, who doesn't) on my design wall that is about double-bed sized... I don't want to stop making something just for the sake of some promise to do a small piece every week.  And I'm not sure I have time for both.  Well, I guess I will think it through some more before I write out my goals and plans for 2013!

Eastern Washington Seed Pods

Here's my favorite inspiration from my day!  The sunshine and shadows on these seedpods was lovely with crisp air filled with the smells of all the dried grasses and grains. 

Planning an Exhibition

Entry to the old cold storage room now refurbished as a gallery

Mighty Tieton is an unique artist community 15 miles outside the city of Yakima, Washington. As the co-chair of Exhibitions for the Contemporary QuiltArt Association, I've scheduled an exhibition in their unique gallery space. Today I visited the space-a remarkable gallery created out of an old fruit processing warehouse. The space where our exhibit will hang was a large cold storage locker complete with huge refrigerator-like doors through which they probably drove forklifts filled with pallets of fresh Yakima valley produce.  Once you get through the door, however, the space is transformed into a wonderful gallery space with soaring ceilings, high-tech lighting and a wire hanging system which will allow us to hang quilts or art-cloth throughout the interior of the gallery, rather than just from the walls.

Currently, in a second "cold storage" space, they have set up an exhibit of Trimpin's sound studio art. Originally from Bavaria, Trimpin's now lives in Seattle. His artwork combines music and sculpture, often using computers to play the instruments. He has exhibited in numerous prestigious galleries and museums, including Seattle Art Museum, the Experience Music Project, Frye Art Museum and many more.

In yet another space in the warehouse, there was the start of a large (approximately 20' x30') felted piece, started when Janice Arnold had one of her incredible felted tents on display (still up in yet another gallery space!). We may even get the opportunity to work on felting this unfinished piece.

I took high-res photos of the space which I'll post after I return home and am able to process them.

As one of my artist goals, I want to get to the place where I can have a solo exhibition of my art. I'm not there yet... but as one step towards this goal, I decided that volunteering as Exhibitions co-chair would help me gain valuable experience which I can use in my future solo shows. Since the time I started working on CQA's exhibitions, I've learned a great deal. How to find potential venues; what to include in an information packet to the prospective gallery; talking with gallery representatives; working out exhibition details; how to publicize the show; hanging an exhibit; putting on an opening event; working with the gallery on sales; and finally, taking the show down.

More to come on the process of putting on exhibitions. Any secrets you have to share would be greatly appreciated!

Let's Journey Together!

jour·ney

noun

1. a traveling from one place to another, usually taking a rather long time.

2. a distance, course, or area traveled or suitable for traveling.

3. a period of travel.

4. passage or progress from one stage to another: the journey to success.

 



Moulin Rouge dans la Nuit

I've been on this journey for some time now... years, really.  It's only been in the last few years that I've felt the need to look towards my destination.  Where do I want to go with my art?  How will I know when I've arrived?  How do I stay on track and not get distracted from my main objectives?

 



I've practiced goal-setting and creating plans to accomplish my goals for years, both in business and in my personal life.  I've seen the power of declaring your intentions publicly.  So, starting today, I'm beginning this new journey... one which I invite you to join, whether as an observer, or as an active committed participant. 

Whether I am detailing my plans for the future, documenting my ongoing progress, learning new skills, or sharing the things that inspire me to make art, I hope to both inspire and be inspired through regular writings on this blog.  I look forward to an incredible time of growth together!



Caverna Magica



To introduce you to a little of where I am currently at, here you can see my quilt, "Moulin Rouge dans la Nuit", currently being shown at SeaTac International Airport in an exhibition named "Journeys" put on by the Contemporary QuiltArt Association (through January 2013.)  The original design is from photographs I took of the Moulin Rouge in 2009.  It is made of both artist hand-dyed and commercial cotton fabrics, which I have then freehand machine embroidered and quilted.

 



The Caves of Nerja

Also in the "Journeys" show is my "Caverna Magica" whole-cloth quilt. When I completed the dyeing of this fabric, it reminded me of seeing the Caves of Nerja, in Andalusia, Spain.  Filled with impressive stalactites and stalagmites, sections of the caves are open to visitors and are lit up with many beautiful colored lights.  I hand-dyed this piece of fabric and then densely freehand machine quilted it with cotton, rayon, and silk thread. 

 



Detail of Caverna Magica



Each day we can make a choice... to further our artistic career and take a step on the journey, or to postpone for yet another day.  When I look back at all the times I've postponed, I have to admit it makes me very sad.  Our time is finite here on this earth.  What do we want to leave behind?  How do we want to spend this limited amount of time?  I know that I want to create.  I want my children and hopefully others to have something tangible that I've created that they love and which, through it, they can feel connected to me.

 

Where are you starting from today?  Do you know where it is that you'd like to get to?  Do you have a plan for how you're going to get there?