Sunday, July 19, 2009

Piecing in the Flow

For many years I taught an intuitive piecing workshop. The focus of the workshop was to teach direct cutting into fabric without prior thought, ruler or pattern. Piecing was taught using a really simple curved piecing method. Assembling fabrics that worked together with a few for contast was a key design clue.  Once you got into the act of cutting and piecing, you begin to loose your 'decider' self and proceed from your basic instincts of color and design, thus creating flow. When I first started this, curved piecing was a relatively new idea. 

Postings showing more of this work from 2/15/09, Blast from the Past, 4/20/09, Batting Average- a short history of batting, 12/4/08 Colors on the Brain  and Piecing in the Flow Workshop At Portsmouth Fabric Co. 3/9/08 which describes the workshop.                                 

Poem below from the early 80's.                                                                   

Tree (2003)

IN THE FLOW                   
I go to my table
Filled with my thoughts and my cloth palette.
Cutting through the fabric,
layers in my mind. 
Opening me,
possibilities,
Spirit finds me! Flow!
Standing back,
I see a new thing.
Collaboration!                                                                  
               

3 comments:

Alison Schwabe said...

I don't know from which teacher curved piecing came into your life, Wen, there are several big names that come to mind, and the one you show on this post suggests Judy Dales possibly, although possibly Nancy Crow too, maybe. I found curved through Nancy's improvisational piecing technique in 1992, and since then have never looked back, exploring it particularly at times with quilts such as 'Afterglow'. I find it interesting that trees (with vertical tneding lines) figure so largely in your inspiration and current subject matter - my focus is more in the horizontal lines of landscape - you can check the work on my website (colurs and ebb & flow galleries in particular) if it is not familiar to you in this context. Interesting.

Sarah E. said...

Your poetry is particularly evocative and really illustrates the mind-set inspired by this technique. I like Alison's comment on vertical vs. horizontal. I'm a vertical kind of gal myself, and the piecing of your tree blocks gets my thoughts flowing (*grin*). Thanks!

Unknown said...

I'm going to want to study this technique, I can tell... your quilt is stunning.

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