tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1210759514036256082.post4085216836427845896..comments2024-03-08T00:12:34.350-08:00Comments on Art and Quilts, cogitations thereon: SimplicityElizabeth Bartonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13928615247903165719noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1210759514036256082.post-35269188914442709392010-02-12T11:18:27.162-08:002010-02-12T11:18:27.162-08:00I, too, am a lurker who rarely comments . . . part...I, too, am a lurker who rarely comments . . . partially because my words don't fit together as wonderfully as my thoughts!<br /><br />Simplicity is essential ~ we are so overwhelmed that it takes effort to see clearly.<br /><br />Thanks for the thoughtful reminder!!Quiltdivajuliehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15593385265961892847noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1210759514036256082.post-85132137008857108292010-02-11T00:30:13.246-08:002010-02-11T00:30:13.246-08:00I'm a quilter who is just learning the art qui...I'm a quilter who is just learning the art quilting process. <br />As always Elizabeth, it seems your blog appears at just the right moment. It goes hand in hand with whatever 'ah-ah' moment I'm thinking about. <br /><br />I've read a lot about journal pages in a sketch book, and have tried to do them, but found it intimidating trying to fit everything on one page. So I tried to write in words the picture in my head, rather than draw it directly. It flowed so easily on to the page. Now I can just sketch directly from my paragraph. (think frogs on lily pads). I think some people just work more easily in words than pictures at first. <br /><br />Thanks again for you insight. Now I know I'm on the right track.Shellyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07939878614158931173noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1210759514036256082.post-12321362431685449132010-02-09T15:45:49.934-08:002010-02-09T15:45:49.934-08:00You can go to a movie, and one time listen to the ...You can go to a movie, and one time listen to the music carefully,<br />another time watch the acting, another time the sound and graphic<br />effects, etc. etc. etc. When you pay close attention to just one<br />part you really notice the many<br />nuances --- and sometimes there just are too many things going on there, too. And your brain can't seem to capture it all. So simplify makes the most sense.<br />You are always "right on"..... thank you for your many insights that help us all think in new ways.marj khttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10583131009401998355noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1210759514036256082.post-87818519779701269952010-02-09T04:03:37.407-08:002010-02-09T04:03:37.407-08:00I know this to be true but why is it so difficult ...I know this to be true but why is it so difficult to apply !! <br />I can often see where I went wrong after the event ( and the problems of overcomplication usually arise because I sneek a peak back at photos rather than relying on my sketches) <br />Perahaps I should try this word thing.magsramsayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16559934058887308651noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1210759514036256082.post-29026928747864243512010-02-09T02:53:29.034-08:002010-02-09T02:53:29.034-08:00I'm here to testify that this method works won...I'm here to testify that this method works wonders. As asked by Elizabeth, I did manage to write a paragraph on what I wanted to create next in series. As I went through the first piece, I noticed that every time I got stuck, it was because I had strayed from my initial paragraph. A big ADUH on me. Also - more than one person stop to read the paragraph which surprised me. Why would people care - but they do. They want to know where you thought your work is going and if it really is getting there (grin).Nina Mariehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14316034317827146338noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1210759514036256082.post-1063504535758256672010-02-08T17:53:10.355-08:002010-02-08T17:53:10.355-08:00You've said what I was just now thinking and s...You've said what I was just now thinking and said it brilliantly. I'm struggling with a challenge quilt and keep discarding all the elements except my core image. ???What to do? ;o)Judy Ellsworthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00759320969477855550noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1210759514036256082.post-73804103441774407822010-02-08T17:36:54.509-08:002010-02-08T17:36:54.509-08:00Elizabeth,
I red every post, but don't often c...Elizabeth,<br />I red every post, but don't often comment, partly because of time, partly because you usually say it all beautifully! I make traditional style quilts but still have learned so much from you. Thank you.<br />Judy BAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1210759514036256082.post-13894310243120982772010-02-08T12:53:24.748-08:002010-02-08T12:53:24.748-08:00Elizabeth, your idea of starting with a single cle...Elizabeth, your idea of starting with a single clear message seems so obvious, but it's one I've never considered. DUH! If I've had a pic of something I wanted to create in fabric, I've been trying to include EVERYTHING...no focus there. And the idea of a series following from the clear message makes perfect sense now. I could never understand why an artist made the same thing (with some alteration) over and over. You have a way of getting to the heart of the matter! I wish you would write a book on the creative process.Mimihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16365451655752398987noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1210759514036256082.post-16120861372538839292010-02-08T12:43:41.864-08:002010-02-08T12:43:41.864-08:00I keep trying to articulate, and I'm improving...I keep trying to articulate, and I'm improving, but it's tough to realize which feature I am attracted to. Your examples that could become more than one piece emphasizing different qualities were helpful; I think that's been a problem. I do pare the image down eventually but it would simplify things if I knew what I was doing! I agree too with Diane about my images being Mine. It's my personal point of view. Thank you.Jackiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04730298448632087144noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1210759514036256082.post-10042280011784978432010-02-08T12:08:12.974-08:002010-02-08T12:08:12.974-08:00This DOES make a lot of sense. Some years ago, I ...This DOES make a lot of sense. Some years ago, I did a one on one lesson with a local artist (a painter) who, as I presented an assortment of photos of a subject I wanted to translate into fabric, asked me, "What do you want to say about it?" She asked me to list the elements about the subject I liked, and the feelings it gave me, and then asked me again, "what do YOU want to say about it?<br /><br />I think about that very often now, because it is so easy to lose touch with that basic concept -- that the point of the art is to reflect what *I* want to say about something. And (going back to your earlier post about working intuitively) it always makes me wonder when someone says "I work intuitively" whether they have an idea in mind that they want to express, or whether it is much more vague than that.<br /><br />It's so easy to get lost in techniques, or using elements that other people use with success... without stopping to think about what one wants to say. <br /><br />And this reminds me of another experience, in a workshop where we were asked to abstract an image. The teacher got all excited about what I was doing and kept suggesting cropping, moving stuff around, etc -- which to me took it AWAY from the very elements I wanted to feature and the message I wanted to say. I finally was able to say "That's not what I want to say about this image" and she left me alone. It would have been so easy to come away with HEr vision for the project, instead of my own. Not that mine was grand or better or even competent -- but it was MINE.<br /><br />So, I totally agree, and think it's an excellent thing to think about. But maybe this is especially true for those of us left brained quilt artists who approach things from thinking instead of seeing, anyway?Diane Perinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07447372718275554860noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1210759514036256082.post-58714570778801057792010-02-08T10:35:07.496-08:002010-02-08T10:35:07.496-08:00Thank you, this is a wonderful precis of process. ...Thank you, this is a wonderful precis of process. Very helpful to us wannabees.Janehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12715563647548550582noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1210759514036256082.post-4784474324214286132010-02-08T08:50:23.460-08:002010-02-08T08:50:23.460-08:00This makes so much sense, it's almost a relief...This makes so much sense, it's almost a relief!<br />At the moment I'm not making the quilts I want to make because I can't put what I want into words. I think if it were a photo there'd be something to hang it on - but it's an idea, an abstraction that when I try to describe it, I end up using my hands.<br /><br />Perhaps I need to write something downLinda B.https://www.blogger.com/profile/05490436237080230938noreply@blogger.com