Sunday, November 22, 2015

Headed to Road

A couple years back, I created an art quilt  called Winter Hunt showcasing a Mountain Lion in search of prey. I loved that piece and have a large giclee for my own enjoyment. (Numbered giclees still available if of interest ) Contact me via my web site (pattsart.com) contact info.

(c) patt blair 

Winter Hunt  lives with it's purchasing owner.       ...... and  now

... I have a new piece titled Summer Hunt... probably more  commonly representative of a mountain lions search for food.  Here's a closeup of this young cat stalking prey beneath the rocky cliff from which he 'watches and waits.'  .... The piece in entirety will be seen for the first time at  January 21-24 2016's  Road To California Quilt show in Ontario, Ca. and as I am told will be featured in an upcoming newspaper article about the uniqueness of todays' quilt shows specifically Road To California.  . My thanks to "Road" and Carolyn Reese for that honor. ( see www.road2ca.com)

Click on photo for enlarged view.  Yep.. I used plenty of thread on his coat!
                            (c) patt blair

Saturday, November 21, 2015

Best Wishes from Sedona

One whole week in paradise.... One can hardly take a bad picture in Sedona... everything from nature seems beautiful.... okay.... this frog isn't gorgeous... but his sculpture sits in Tlaquepaque  and he's blowing kisses to passers by.
This shot taken from the walkway to The Chapel of The Holy Cross below..  In the distance.. Bell Rock which for me is the welcome sign coming into Sedona.
Frank Lloyd Wright had a hand in this Chapel nestled within and colored-to-match  the red rocks of Sedona.
View from inside.
I did work on a project while in sedona... but it's just not ready fro prime time photos.   I've already booked 2 weeks next year for returning.    So much good energy in this beautiful valley of red rock mountains.

Wednesday, November 18, 2015

A talented students beautiful class piece!


Mary Cambiano is on the ball for sure....   Less than 2 weeks after class in Houston classes, she has quilted her Dragonfly created in my painting with inks class the International Quilt Festival. You Rock Mary!!! 

Thursday, November 12, 2015

Searching For Turmoil

I decided I would take on a different challenge... an abstract one at that. This one to represent whatever TURMOIL means to me.  So I am first playing on canvas with acrylics as I want quick dry time.  I think... the end result will become a fine art giclee on fabric. We will see!   What I think of for 'turmoil'... It includes darkness, and swirling confusion. It contains more than one element of confusion and can't be too clearly defined... as turmoil is seldom really clear.  
So my first thought was to paint blackness,  leaving some irregular unpainted space where some other image/s might go.

I then added an ethereal electric light value turquoise.. a favorite color of mine.... so what better challenge to myself but to use a color I love to create something I don't!   At first blush... there seemed too much broad areas of light. 

So I broke up areas  with here and there black.  Better... but honestly...  I wasn't that thrilled... this chaos that comes with turmoil seemed a bit more orderly than I wanted to portray.
So I (black) painted over everything but the very outer edges of this 28 x 38 canvas...  Once dried..
I gave myself less than 5 minutes with a 'dry brush' fan brush of light turquoise to create my own feeling of turmoil. I feel I previously spent too much time trying to create the 'perfect turmoil.'  Silly me!  It didn't convey the kind of indecisive feeling I wanted. 

 I am painting this with the thought of how I might use thread to enhance this piece. Thread will be highly important.   I have a plan... it's loosely hidden in my head... 

The image I think I will use reads a bit dark below. I quickly learned it is hard to photograph a mostly black image and get it to stay black and still keep the foreground color visible.  It will be a couple months before I get this onto fabric and on the machine. Stay tuned! ;-D  patt 




Sunday, November 1, 2015

Aldo Luongo

Okay Okay... not an art quilter but a most interesting artist.  He paints many subjects particularly beautiful females but it is interesting that Aldo  Luongo is a painter which even as a young man also began to paint himself as an old man, in this case enjoying a taste of port.  His paintings normally contain vibrant colors with a great deal of movement in them.  

                                        
 I love that in the piece below, Luongo is seemingly leaning against a wall, taking a short break!     This piece below is different.   A few years ago I happened upon this fine art print charcoal sketch (essentially of himself )  titled "The Work Goes On!"
Decades back, when the Kennedy Center first opened in New York, a then young Luongo was the artist in residence and this image of an older Luongo was offered for sale at the opening.

Ted Kennedy as well as Aldo Luongo have original signatures on this piece.
Why do I like this so? It is a reminder to me to lean back, take a break!
 I needn't be a slave to work.  There will be time !   ...after I finish teaching/blogging! ;-D

click here to go to his site.
http://www.aldoluongo.com/Aldo_Luongo_Gallery_Index.html