Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Working in Series – a new workshop is starting

airport 1

airport wheels 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’m starting a new session of my workshop Working In Series at Quilt University.com this Friday and I’ve had quite a few emails asking me questions about it, so I thought I’d take the opportunity to describe it a little more fully.

Firstly if you’ve never taken an online course before, Quilt University is really the best place to start.  The classes are extremely reasonable: $36 for 4 fully downloadable lessons plus an online discussion group where people ask questions and I answer to the best of my ability and  you have your own “gallery” where you can publish an image so that we can discuss it.  The Dean of QU is very friendly and very used to people who have not had a lot of experience with online classes.  And I think she lives totally glued to her computer – she responds so quickly with cheerful help to every query!

Secondly, What has surprised me, in teaching these classes, is just how much you can teach and learn, and, even better, how well you can get to know people who may be 1 mile away or thousands of miles away.  It’s wonderful hearing about fiber art and quilting in very far away places and feeling just how many kindred spirits there are out there.

The question I’ m most frequently asked is whether  or not a person can go at their own pace.  I think an online situation is definitely superior to a real life workshop in this regard. Throughout the 6 or 7 weeks of the course you can go back to earlier lessons and re read them and ask questions about them.  If you have to be away for a few days, or are very busy, you can catch right up with the lessons and the discussions and the galleries  for they are all right there waiting for you.  

barton guildhall

Level of ability is not a concern – the classes are aimed at all levels.   There are no tests, no grades, no competitiveness, no pass and no fail!   I hope that all will make progress in the direction and to the extent which they wish to go.

  Also, being a native English speaker is less of an issue than you might think.  The Dean has instructed us to keep to standard English wherever possible so that the translation programs can work well.  Sometimes the sentences get turned around a bit but you can always get the sense of it.

The Working in Series class is not, however, about the actual cutting and sewing and construction of a quilt.  It is about finding your own voice, how to develop your own ideas and how to know which ideas best represent you.   The aim is to explore the art world in general in order to find the right subject, the right style, the right working method.  It’s about improving your work and the best way to develop a coherent body of work is to work in a series.  This workshop focuses on the development of  several related designs for quilts. 

windows blue light

It’s about the importance of strong compositions and how to achieve them.  One of the many beauties of a series is that your awareness of design guidelines grows as they are outlined, discussed with reference to art quilts in particular, emphasized, exercised and practiced as you evaluate each piece. 

  colliiergate

Do not worry about being able to draw.  Drawing is a technical skill that improves with practice.  It is useful for some specific types of art but not all.  It is well known that many successful artists do not draw that well; the important thing is to be able to sketch out roughly what you want to do, where you want to place the main shapes, so that you have a plan you can follow.  If you can draw a diagram of your kitchen – you can make rough sketches!

More than anything, working in a series helps you learn how to work from your own ideas and discover your unique voice.  Your quilts may be abstract, realistic or impressionistic or any style at all!

I hope this helps to clarify – feel free to comment and ask questions and I’ll reply in the comment section; if you’ve taken a class with me and want to comment too – that’s absolutely fine!

so, if you have been, thanks for reading!  Elizabeth

PS the quilts shown are all part of a series I did many years ago on “windows”; the ones at the top are installed in Gate 27 or 29, concourse E, Atlanta Airport (hence the poor lighting).

6 comments:

Quiltdivajulie said...

I've registered --- looking forward to this adventure!

Venus de Hilo said...

Wonderful! So glad to hear this class is happening online. Excited to have a change to learn from you and other participants.

kay said...

I took this class last year, and of the 4 or 5 QU classes I've taken, this was THE BEST! Elizabeth is a great teacher! I recommend that you actively participate in the discussion boards with other students in the class for additional feedback and exchange of ideas. I'm still using what I learned in the class as I continue to work on my series. (I guess that's the idea, isn't it?!) I plan to take the class again, maybe the next time it's offered.

Elizabeth Barton said...

Thank you Kay! It's great to know that you are continuing to use the information - yes - if it's any good (!) - that IS the point!! As always though that's upto the student and reflects well on you. When you take the class again, I look forward to seeing your series!! Elizabeth

Glen QuiltSwissy said...

I have taken a lot of classes over the years with QU. And I love them.

This one I wanted badly but the timing was not right in my life.

glen

Elizabeth Barton said...

The next Working in Series class starts September 21, and Inspired to Design starts on August 3rd. Registration opens about 6 weeks before.