Suddenly with the onset of COVID19 we’ve come up with a whole new set of words to describe what is going on haven’t we? Before, “flattening the curve” was an easy fix: lay your newly sewn curve piece and press well thereby flattening it. That was easy! Now, it’s not so easy to fix the curve with mask wearing, confinement to homes, social distancing and the like trying to slow the progression of this new virus. So how did this affect us as art quilters?
As I ponder this, I’ve been busily sewing functional but aesthetic masks using up pieces I’ve loved from my stash in hopes that they will help someone else. I’m struggling with current challenges that seem remote from the immediate concerns and yet trying to find a way to express my feelings on all this. Are you in the same boat creatively??
Thank goodness I am working through the 100Day Project so I can add elements that remind me of these dramatic changes and issues. While only 3” mini quilts done daily, they now include faces with masks, images of people at computers and always a small section of gray mesh heavily beaded that indicates this Pandemic Cloud we are under. The project finishes at the end of this month but I feel like continuing to show the progression into summer. Going past the 100 days? Why not? What artist hasn’t tried breaking the “rules”? So check out these latest images: . .
72nd Day of the !00 Day Project. Note that there is gray mesh with beads denoting the COVID19 confinement haze but spring is coming. The Kitty is wearing a mask.
Set the background and design by day and bling by night is the name of the game for these tiny quilted gems. Each day, I head to the computer to check out the low temperature of the previous day which sets the background for that day’s project. This morning, I missed moving into the teal family by 1degree! It’s getting warmer slowly but surely. This is actually an interesting way to see one move into spring (besides seeing the daffodils begin to open and crocus in bloom). As we began the confinement period due to the COVID19 pandemic, I began to realize that I wanted to have these blocks represent what was happening in the homes. As you look inside the windows of each, most show people doing things from getting dressed to pondering the world outside. We are all finding ways to adjust.
As the 100DayProject continues, the skies are taking on a blue purple hue due to the colder temperatures at night. Am I the only one in the Midwest who is hoping for the subzero weather to return? I’m looking forward to using purples in the art pieces 😁. This one is based on buildings in downtown Port Byron using an abstracted fused style of Ellen Linder. You can also see some of the other art quilts that have been created this last week.
My theme is set for the 100 Day project and I’m using the idea of houses and windows, secret places we find in the village of Port Byron. Clustering a few of my tiny quilts to share with you might reduce the time of posting but still be a way to work through the creative thought process. I have a feeling that this will morph as it goes along, right? So far, the low temperature of the day that determines the color background of the piece, has moved from purple to blue as we warm up. These last two artworks are based on businesses in our village: the veterinarian who takes care of Theo, our cockapoo, and the bank plus assorted others with black windows. What goes on inside them?? How much do we know about our neighbors? What goes on in our community?
marykayhdesigns 