Quilt National 2013

Greetings from Athens, Ohio! I flew out yesterday with Hari, my husband, for the opening of Quilt National 2013. I've been looking forward to this for awhile, as my latest quilt. "No One but You" has been accepted into the show. There is a reception this afternoon for the artists only, then the official opening of the show, awards ceremony and banquet. QN happens every other year, and is a prestigious show to be accepted into - sort of the Holy Grail for art quilters. I'm anxious to see the other accepted pieces. QN has the honor of presenting all the art for the first time; none of the artists were supposed to show their accepted piece before the opening. I'll let you know what I think afterwards, I'm curious to see if I can spot any trends in this event for contemporary art quilting.

where to put the attention?

Whoa, I got ahead of myself. I forgot something. What, am I kidding - another step? Oh yeah, and there'll be a lot more before this is done!
Unusual perspective was what I had been first thinking about for this quilt. What did that mean? Bird's eye view, looking on from on high?

No, that separates me from the  reality of the scene - it's putting me on a different plane, like I'm not on the same footing as the characters, I'm in a different world.

How about up close then? Maybe. But here the attention is so focused on the front characters that all the rest becomes meaningless. Also, in the right photo, the one solitary figure, who has a lot of symbolism, is right between the front two figures, and that interrupts the dialog of the two.

Just by changing the location of the camera, I can capture a different view of the scene. I've shifted over to the right and a little higher. The solitary figure is isolated now, and that is better. But I think I want to emphasize him more. And, if you look at last post, you'll see that I've brought him right up front.

My plan is that all the figures are relating to each other in some way, they are all connected. Two look at a book, two are at a grave, maybe planting flowers, and a few are seated together, maybe telling stories. The groups will be touching in some way visually, the hat overlapping the grave behind, the grave overlapping the figure behind. Yet, one figure is alone. He is quiet, introspective? He is the only one staring straight ahead, connecting with the viewer. What is his story?

I'll get to that, next post. See you then.

Leading the eye

Here's another view of the set up. I needed something to hang the flags from, so I used the fan as it was the only thing around tall enough. When I look at the photos, I just ignore the fan.

I wanted to have a dramatic perspective, but wasn't quite sure what I meant by that. A view from the top? A very close up of the figures in front?  I thought I would start with the flags. Not only can a show depth of field, with far away ones being smaller and the larger ones being close by, but I'll also use them as a way to guide your eye into or around the picture.

The first one here shows that flags coming in almost over your head and receding almost straight back.  It's not giving enough information  - first, you're trying to figure out what they are, and second, they're not helping to define distance. So it's just acting as a distraction to the rest of the picture. 

This next one doesn't do much

 for either perspective

 or leading the eye.

Now, the one on the left is definitely a possibility. The big guy catches your attention, and the flags lead you back into the picture.

The diagram below shows where my eye travels. The blue line on the left is about where the edge of the picture will be. The flags take me out of the picture on the right, but I travel back in through the middle figures, helped by the leaning position and the direction of his gaze.  An unusual point is that my eye stops toward the center of the picture. Usually you want to lead into the picture, have your eye travel around, and then lead out. Here I'm using the dark areas just outside of the compositional triangle (described by the green line) as a pathway for the eye to travel out.

What, no comments?

To anyone who has sent me a comment via this blog, I haven't received it! I just found out today that a friend has been sending comments to my blog regularly. I never knew that as I haven't received any! Obviously, there is a problem with some setting on this Blogger account. I've looked at the settings and looked on Google for a solution to the problem, but I haven't come up with anything yet. If you have sent me some words, please don't think I'm rude for not replying. Until I figure this out, you can always get through to me via the contact page on my website:  www.susanpolansky.com

And by the way, my new site is in the works, 

and I anticipate that it will be up and running
 within the next few weeks.

No pictures today as I've been working on a lecture presentation that I will be giving at Quinobequin Quilter's Guild meeting on May 14. The topic will be "What does it mean to Find Your Voice as an Artist?" I've got the body of what I want to say down, now I've got to work on the visual presentation. My laptop developed a major glitch, and it has just been rebuilt, thanks to my husband and son. I've got to get used to some changes, re-load some programs (like Photoshop Elements - can't do without that,) and see if I want to use Power Point for the presentation. I've never used Power Point, so don't know if there is much of a learning curve. Guess I could always have my other son give me some lessons. Ah, the things they learn in school these days!

Take your places and smile for the camera

Here's how the set up looks. I've used pins to hold the flag strings suspended from one side to another. I'm not sure how to place the flags right now, so I'll work on placing the figures first.
Somewhere the head of my tripod has been lost, so I have had to create a holder for my small Canon Elph camera. I used foam core board to create a slot just big enough for the bottom of my camera to fit in. I can easily pull it off the tripod if I need to photograph something else, or if I need to change the battery. I'm just your basic point and shoot photographer, but I think this set up should work for the purpose I need it for.

Here's what I'm looking at.

While they sit around waiting

The remembrance project, the name I'm beginning to think of for the quilt this blog is about, has been delayed. Not at a complete standstill, as these photos will attest. I've set up the drawing table and covered it with fabric. I've started setting up the pieces. And I've made strings of flags out of little rectangles of paper towels and string. I've also found a tripod and gotten my camera set up ready. 

Making strings of flags while

 the characters sit around waiting

Meanwhile, I've been busily working on gathering all my information together for a new website. I want to put my blog and gallery together, so only one address is needed. When I go to Athens, Ohio towards the end of May, I want to have my new site up and running. I'll be attending the opening of Quilt National 2013, where my latest work, "No One but You" has been selected to be in. This show is a big deal for art quilters, some liken it to the Holy Grail of the contemporary quilting world.

Quilt National is a biennial international juried exhibition of contemporary innovative quilts. The first Quilt National was shown in 1979. The eighteenth in the series of international juried competitions dedicated to promoting the contemporary quilt by serving as a showcase for NEW work (completed after September 1, 2010). The jurors will select works that represent unique approaches to the medium and demonstrate the breadth and diversity of contemporary expressions.

It's a tough show to get into - they even give an award for the person who has entered the most times before being accepted. There is usually a predominance of abstract work, and as my piece is a work of realism, I think it will really stand out.

I'll get a lot of exposure from the show, and that in itself warranted a sprucing up of my website. Although I like the site I have now (www.susanpolansky.com), the functionality of it is a bit antiquated.
I'm aiming for a bit more sophistication in this next go 'round. There have been many changes in the technical end of things, so I'm hoping for a better content managing system, so uploading new work will be easier. See, I'm planning for an artistically productive future!

yeah, I've got nothing...

I met with my critique group today. We are art quilters and call our group "New Wrinkle." The six of us have been meeting once a month (more or less) for many years. We each have different styles, but we are comfortable with each other enough to comment and critique each other's work. Occasionally we have put up group shows, like the one we recently did at the Audubon Broadmoor Wildlife Center in Natick, MA.
Today the others had work to show - finished quilts, work in progress, or ideas being stitched together. But I had nothing. At least, that's what it felt like. I didn't have anything in hand, but I talked about my idea. I had already shown the clay figures and set up that I had put together, so there was nothing new to bring to the table.
Yet did that mean I really had nothing? I've been busy with the development of my idea. Many times with creating art, there is nothing to show for all the obsession that goes on behind the scenes. The infinite amount of fidgeting with small changes can be a crucial to the outcome, but hardly noticeable on a daily basis. And add on to that the delays that life imposes; well, it does seem like nothing has been accomplished.