Art Tour Blog Hop

Last month my friend Natalya Aikens asked me to write a post as part of a wonderful art blog tour. It's a collection of questions answered by all kinds of artist bloggers. Really fun and inspiring stuff. You can read Natalya's post here and link back through her post to lots of other artists.

You can read Natalya's post, then click back through the blog hop to read about lots of other inspiring artists. I'm thrilled to join this long train of arty bloggers.

What am I working on?
I'm working on two projects. One is something entirely different. Actually, it's not *entirely* different. I'm using colors, techniques and motifs that I use regularly in my work, but the construction and format will be very different. I'm not feeling particularly confident about it at the moment, but it's a good experiment. It started with 50 3x3 inch squares of white felt.

I am also working on a companion piece for my recent art quilt titled Waning Crescent Meditation.

I cut out the silhouette shapes from the teal and the blue fabrics you can see here. So, I'm using those reverse shapes to create a second quilt. I'm only just beginning to gather fabrics and think about what motifs or symbols I may use.

How does my work differ from others of its genre?
I use many familiar symbols, shapes, colors, and stitched motifs in my work. Over the past few years, I've developed a recognizable style. So, it's not so much that my work is different from others. I use fabric and stitching the same way many other do in the art quilt world. It's just that my work is mine.

Why do I create what I do?
It's fun. I love fabric. I love combining fabric with stitching. I don't ever get tired of experimenting with layers and exploring how images and shapes can tell a story.

How does your creative process work?
I begin with a concept, often driven by a particular call for entry or opportunity to exhibit my work. Then I gather fabric and compose the design. Sometimes this comes easily, sometimes it's arduous. Then I fuse all the pieces together and begin to add details with stitching by hand and by machine. Quite often there are roadblocks along the way. It seems that every art quilt I've ever made has gone through an ugly stage. It may seem like the creative process gets derailed, but that's not the case at all. Those bumps are actually an important part of the process.

Thanks for reading!

Rayna Gilman posted her answers and lots of images of her beautiful work. Terry Grant will be posting next, so check her out next week.