Betty Warner Quilts - My Adventure

September 23,2011

2011-09-24T11:53:00.002-04:00

Yesterday was the first day of fall 2011. It was also another milestone in my life. It marked the one month anniversary of the first of two total knee replacements. The last month has been very interesting - don't worry I won't bore you with the details. It is sufficient to say it has been humbling, the knees have been all consuming, and the the progress has been very good.

I find it very interesting to see how things in my artist's life have moved forward without my full attention and management. My art quilt that was on exhibit at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia has returned home. My art quilt to commemorate the 9/11 Anniversary has been on display with others in Chicago. Four art quilts were shipped out for an exhibit for "The Journal of Ordinary Thought" which began last week. Our 'The Unspoken Truth About Color: A Dialogue in Art Quilts About Racism" exhibit was in Pennsylvania last week. I look forward to getting back in to my studio with a clear mind and some awesome inspiration.

In the last month, I have experienced an earthquake and a hurricane/tropical storm. I have been inspired by the people of Vermont and their reaction to the devastating flooding. A beloved aunt has passed away. Children are back in school, politicians continue to raise my blood pressure, death and destruction continues in many parts of the world, debris from space will be falling somewhere in the world today, and, oh yes, once more we must endure the changes to our Facebook pages.

I have observed that as quickly as an event can cause our hearts to break, another event causes our hearts to burst with joy. Ah, the circle of life in which we are all bound to one another.

SAQA Benefit Auction 2011 - "Two Shells"

2011-06-29T21:12:00.000-04:00

This is the 12" x 12" work that I sent to SAQA (Studio Art Quilt Associates) for the benefit auction which begins September 12, 2011. Click here and scroll down the page to see more artist's works that will be available then.

Urban Blight - 20h x 16w

2011-05-21T17:29:00.000-04:00

This piece was done in response to a word challenge from the Textile Abstractions group. The word was 'blight' which immediately brought to my mind the phrase 'urban blight'. The fabric on the right, the brick wall, was originally just plain white and has been painted/stencilled in three layers which was great fun.

SAQA 2010 Benefit Auction

2010-09-12T14:12:00.000-04:00

"Playtime"
12" x 12"

Several weeks ago I sent this work, "Playtime", 12" x 12", off to SAQA, Studio Art Quilt Associates, for inclusion in the annual fundraising online auction which begins on September 20th. It is one of many that will become available over a period of several days.

Flower Child

2010-05-04T20:43:00.002-04:00

Another response to a challenge. It was fun to do. Sharpies with alcohol sprayed to blend the colors on white fabric is how her face was created. The flowers were Lutrador coated with a thin coat of Gesso before being run through the printer. The challenge was issued on April 23rd, response to be posted best case by May 1, 12noon. I actually posted it on Sunday May 2nd. It is a happy piece that I was happy working on.

Another Challenge Response - Love the colors in the Cheez-It box

2010-01-02T15:00:00.000-05:00

This month's Fast Friday Fabric Challenge was, as usual, interesting. The challenge was to find product packaging to use for the color scheme, create a still life based on nature, specifically plants. I'm not so sure the still life objective was met, but I had fun working on this. I manipulated a photo - cropping, applying filters, turning into a sketch, and replacing colors, then drew the sketch onto fabric which I then painted and quilted.

The product packaging was Cheez-It crackers, sometimes found at my house. Red and orange are very appealing to me lately. Abstracting from photos is always fascinating to me. All in all, creating this little study piece was fun, satisfying, and a good start to the new year.

Joy

2010-01-01T14:44:00.004-05:00

My wish for everyone in this New Year is to find even more joyful moments each day. I remember to find those moments by trying to spend my day immersed in the present rather than thinking of the next to do. I create those moments when I do what makes my heart sing - being with those I love, doing what I love, experiencing or creating art, surrounding myself in nature, hearing music.

Back in the Studio

2009-12-02T10:35:00.003-05:00

After a couple of months of little activity in my studio, I am back at work with determination to create every day. This photo is of a piece I did for the Fast Friday Fabric Challenge. It was created by working with a piece of batik fabric to create amoeba like objects from thread and paint.

A new journal - using Lutrador

2009-07-29T17:18:00.004-04:00

Today I worked some more with Lutrador which has some wonderful qualities. The upper photo shows the underlying fabric base which peeps through the Lutrador in the most wonderful way. The lower photo shows painted and stamped Lutrador applied to the base of a journal cover.

A Gathering of Friends Who Love Fiber and Fiber Art

2009-07-18T21:56:00.010-04:00

Today I had the good fortune to attend a gathering organized by my fiber loving friends Patsy, Pam, and Fran. We shared wonderful quilts, clay sculptures, art quilts, a new quilter's in process applique, clothing, antique notions, knitted socks, a painting, needle tatted accessories, small knit beaded bags, knit socks, home dec fabric bags, felted knit wool bags, and a bag of leather.

Triad Color Scheme using Water Soluble Wax Pastels

2009-07-10T14:51:00.007-04:00

Happily, I completed a Fast Friday Fabric Challenge in less than a week. This month's color challenge was to use a triadic color scheme -green, purple, orange. The composition challenge was to use pattern and/or texture - grid pattern created by the black outlined blocks and alternating horizontal and vertical strokes of the watersoluble wax pastels and quilting of the horizontal grids and the flower.

This is not a color scheme or a style I would typically use. Fun is the right word to describe its creation.

Door #1

2009-06-27T19:57:00.004-04:00

On Monday, I will be putting this in the mail to Martha Sielman of SAQA, Studio Art Quilt Association, Executive Director, for inclusion in the 2009 SAQA Auction. The color is not quite accurate in this photo. I enjoyed working on it. It is a screenprinted piece from an April workshop combined with commercial fabrics.

The auction is a major fundraiser for SAQA whose purpose is to promote art quilts and art quilters. You can find more information at http://www.saqa.com/.

Spring Hyacinth I

2009-06-07T20:11:00.006-04:00

It has been a long time since I posted anything here. (I thought it had only been 3 weeks.) Oh, well! I have been working. In May two quilts were completed. One was a bed quilt for a charity auction.. Unfortunately, possibly because of finishing it at the last minute, no picture exists. The other piece, completed for an art sale at a fund raiser, is a 16" piece based on a photo of some hyacinths seen in Elizabeth Park in West Hartford this past March. It is the first piece I have prepared to hang by wrapping it on stretcher bars. I was striving for the look of a sketch on top of the quilt grid.

Music Makes My Heart Sing

2009-03-09T17:49:00.004-04:00

Another Fast Friday Fabric Challenge. This time the challenge was to use a split complimentary color scheme and to incorporate an S-curve. A fun challenge which I enjoyed doing.

I attempted to contrast a sense of an older time with a more contemporary time. The straightest curve in the G clef was repeated in the seam of the two sections. The black and white stripes started with 1" strips. Some handstitching was added around the transfers of the song sheet covers and also added in the lower left hand corner.

I look forward to the next challenge from this group.

Wildflowers Show Up Everywhere

2009-02-26T15:00:00.001-05:00

Wildflowers often appear in unexpected places bringing beauty to all who see them.

Time Echoes

2009-02-22T23:56:00.007-05:00

This was my first attempt at Ozymandias. Was trying to illustrate the degradation of things over time.

Ozymandias

2009-02-22T22:00:00.001-05:00

My art group put forth a challenge to interpret a poem. I chose Shelly's "Ozymandias". Here is the result. Actually it is the second result. The first is still in process and is more abstract. One of the world's great poems, it provokes thought about man's arrogance and the fleeting existence of our 'great works'.

Playing with Tsukineko inks. Painted desert and pyramid. Quilted following shapes. Then added the crumbling statue, using a technique suggested by Cyndi Souder. Was a fun little project in response to a challenge to interpret a poem.

Obama: A Celebration in Art Quilts

2009-02-22T19:34:00.004-05:00

These two quilts, "Together We Can Bridge the Divide" and "More Than Ever, A Beacon of Hope" are currently on exhibit at the Cafritz Gallery at Montgomery College.

If you are in the Silver Spring, MD, area over the next couple of week, be sure to take a look at this exhibit:

President Obama: A Celebration in Art Quilts
Location: Cafritz Art Center, 150 King St., Silver Spring, MD
Dates: February 9 - March 5, 2009

Here is the story of this exhibit:

Susan Walen was bringing her Obama quilt home from the Bethesda headquarters of the campaign, wondering how many other “quilts of joy” about the election were being made. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if they could all be shown together, in D.C.? She sent out a call for quilts on major web sites (SAQA and ArtQuilt) and within 30 hours, over 40 quiltmakers responded. Now, we present a show from more than 60 of us: a grass-roots, multi-ethnic, all-volunteer group of women from all around the US and as far away as Australia. This is a quilt show of amazing diversity -- among the quilters and their art. Our extraordinary diversity mirrors the diversity and international support that Obama’s election has generated.

The works in this show are art quilts, distant descendants of the folk art tradition. Visitors will discover how contemporary fiber artists have translated and transformed this tradition to create a dynamic collection of fiber art work, all of a common theme: celebrating this historic election. Artists in this show use a wide range of techniques including painting on fabric, fabric dyeing, photography, beadwork, appliqué, stitching, embroidery, and digital transfer. Most of the artists work individuals, but one quilt is made by a small group (the Pixiladies), and another by a 10-person group (Fiber Artists for Obama). Most of the quilts will have their first showing here, but some have already been shown at a major quilt show in Houston.

Her Coat of Many Generations - 14" x 14"

2009-02-18T15:15:00.001-05:00

Just made available today - the E Pluribus Unum 2 Quiltart List Challenge online exhibit. This work was completed in November 2008.

To view the entire exhibit go to http://www.quiltart.com/challenges/epu2/index.html.

Below is the statement which accompanied my entry.

"In our family it is hard to clearly identify our ethnic background. We think it is mostly northern European. Many generations of women have lived in this country through good times and bad. We are a family of strong women. Fabrics representing different eras – from 1830’s until 2000’s, show us ‘threads that weave and bind’ us all together."

Abstract Feather - 20" x 15"

2009-02-17T23:04:00.002-05:00

This work was done in response to a group challenge to interpret a photograph of a duck in water. I abstracted a portion of one of the feathers on the duck and here is the completed work.

Blue Shapes - 8" x 10"

2009-02-16T14:32:00.001-05:00

A piece done last November. Was done as the result of a challenge to get a piece done in a week. Actually had less than a week. Took a shortcut in that I printed the fabric. The result of playing in Photoshop layers. A monochromatic color scheme with a focus on perspective. Printed out the fabric, quilted, added some hand stitching around some of the shapes. Fun to do. May do some modifications to create a larger piece with more fabrics.