I'm hot on a new project and from my perspective - it's coming out beautifully. When I showed my daughter...she looked a little puzzled. I got one of those... "um, yeah, I really like the colors" comments with this really puzzled look on her face.
I am a fan of @DailyOverview on IG (Instagram). They post photos with a bird's eye view of subjects. Two posts got my serious attention:
Oil tanker ships on the ocean
and
Container ships on the ocean
I was fascinated by the color of the water and the variety of color of the ships. So of course, I had to make a quilt. I sketched out my design - which incorporated lots of ocean colors. From greens to blues - they are all found all over the world.
I think we often become desensitized by tv and the internet (and books) and don't realize those gorgeous colored waters really exist. Living on the east coast of the US, I see the murky grey- greenish- blue up close. I took a cruise many years back and spent half my time ogling the water. I simply could not believe how amazing the colors were depending on our location. So these colors are really out there - and they make me happy.
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| Thank you graph paper. I love you. |
I thought it would be more interesting to use a transparency style layout so I could incorporate lots of ocean colors. I decided a simple way to create this piece was to use 5 inch blocks. Normally, I'd crank out my blocks off my Accu-quilt cutter but I was so limited on a couple of these fabric pulls that I couldn't afford the waste - so I carefully cut each out with one of my many, many, overpriced but completely necessary lucite rulers.
For the ships, I felt I wanted to use different scale representations and lots of directions as in which they might be going.... I think this is where I lost my daughter and perhaps the flaw in my design. We'll find out when I'm finished - and it could even change from this....but it's where I'm headed right now.
I'm not trying to be abstruse...but if you haven't seen those Daily Overview photos...I can see where this quilt might be challenging to understand...
When I'm done, if it's not completely clear...maybe I'll print a large label for the back - explaining my vision....
What are you up to this week?
The penny dropped when I looked at the photos! Hope there are no collisions! Thanks for linking up to #scraptastictuesday
ReplyDeleteThanks Nicky- yep - this quilt has some challenges ahead....
ReplyDeletecute quilt
ReplyDeleteThanks Barbara - we'll see how it goes....
DeleteI totally get your vision :) and I understand how hard some things are to explain that are totally obvious to me! This reminded me of a game of Battleships! Thanks for linking up today x
ReplyDeleteThanks Ali - we're on the same wavelength!!
DeleteI love seeing the inspiration for quilts, especially more modern art quilts, and you nailed it! Love your vision and how you're putting it together! Well done!!
ReplyDeleteChristine - thanks! It's been a fun one that has kept my interest. It won't turn into a WIP!
DeleteI completely get your inspiration and execution of this quilt piece! I grew up on the east coast and understand your description of the ocean colors there. Last summer my hubs and I got to visit Hawaii, and I oh so loved the clear blues there! So different than the east coast! Looking forward to seeing your completed quilt.
ReplyDeleteSharon (sorry for the delay in response - Blogger wasn't letting me into respond for some reason?) Thank you for your kind words. Yes - while I love the east coast, the waters of the world are very different and mesmerizing!
DeleteI loved seeing your thought and design process. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThank you Cat. Explaining the process is sort of helpful to me. Keeps me focused and on track sort of.
DeleteWhile you captured the image in the first photo, I would tend toward the less chaotic image of the second photo. Have fun with the finishing and you've certainly got that TEAL thing going on for the RSC!!
ReplyDeleteSo sorry about your ankle! Yes - I like the less chaotic version of the two, as well. I do love some teal!!
DeleteThe water colors are totally great and give a feeling of deep and shallow areas. The container ships do look realistic and the colors are just the right accents. However, these ships follow shipping lanes on maps to avoid shallow waters, so they do follow certain paths. The two near the bottom look like they are on a collision course. Of course in art they can be wherever they look best to you. Just give it more thinking time and the answer will come. I would love to see a series of these.
ReplyDeleteThanks Paula - I definitely don't want any collisions! I read that there is a container lost at sea every day - isn't that crazy? I put that little blip of red on one of the blocks in honor of the fallen containers... It's still percolating...will be finishing probably this weekend so I'll blog about it after.
DeleteLove your style of writing, drawing us in. Any quilt based on the colors of the ocean blue ought to be pretty indeed.
ReplyDeleteThanks Myra - sometimes I wonder if my style is too conversational....but then it's really the way I feel most comfortable in communicating my "stuff"... Thanks!
DeleteLove your inspiration. Good luck in the finishing,
ReplyDeleteThank you Tammy! I am working on it today and hope to be done by the weekend. Will post results and process when I get there.
DeleteI often think I don't need to "get it" in order to appreciate and love the art. It's lovely--you keep it up, grrl.
ReplyDelete