Art Piece # 074: 1973 (Pam Beal Class)

Time to Celebrate

| Cindy Anderson

Let’s celebrate! Well, not quite yet. Before we pop the cork on the champagne let’s turn the calendar pages back a bit.

Not too long ago I made the choice to turn the wheels of my art cart in a different direction. The course change meant giving up my customer-based longarm quilting business for total focus on my own endeavors. The decision, although very hard, was a longtime in the making.

As was shared in a previous visit, selling my art to fellow enthusiasts meant finding an outlet for the transactions to take place. The location I selected was Raven’s Wish. Just because I chose them didn’t mean they would mutually agree. On a very exciting day in January, my husband and I packed items from my portfolio into the truck of our car and headed to the gallery. Upon arrival I popped in to see if the owner, Alicia Reid, had time to visit. Alicia was currently visiting with an individual but was willing to divert her attention to my direction. After returning to my car, where my husband was patiently waiting, we retrieved my belongings and proceeded inside.

Shared with Alicia were samples of my small fabric art pieces, my meditative hand stitching items and my newly created greeting cards. Alicia carefully examined the items before her. As she pondered I presented my application and inquired about the jury process. With a smile on her face she announced that the jury process was complete. She was more than happy to display selected pieces of my art in her gallery and offer them up for sale. I’m sure you can imagine the elation I felt. How wonderful it was to have someone give value to my art. After mutually agreeing on pricing we entered into a contract.

Alicia now has nine of my polyester stretch velvet projects, four of my meditative hand stitchery pieces and three of my improv fabric art creations. All of the above are available for purchase on a commission basis. Purchased outright were twelve of my greeting cards.

  • Tuxedo, AP # 84
  • X’s and O’s, AP # 75
  • 1973, AP # 74
  • Raspberry Lemonade, AP # 152
  • Rolling Down the River, AP # 155
  • What’s Not to Like, AP # 159
Some of the items on sale at Raven’s Wish

During our discussion I mentioned the solo art exhibit I was privileged to experience at Blue Bar Quilts last fall. If Alicia was aware of the event I thought it would give her the opportunity to visit my blog and peruse the other items in my portfolio. At the mention of my previous event Alicia then offered me the opportunity to do the same at her gallery. After discussing several options we decided to schedule a show for the month of August. I think my heart skipped several beats when Alicia made the suggestion. Internally I was flabbergasted! I’ve been happily working with fiber arts for decades always wondering if it was worthy of appreciation. Having another well-known establishment acknowledge my endeavors was something I had never thought possible.

When I left Raven’s Wish, on that very memorable day in January, I believe I floated out the door. My decision to change course had been validated. Along with it came an even stronger desire to expand my portfolio. Alicia’s nod lifted my spirits and gave my ego the boost it desired. I know that life is not always filled with champagne bubbles and roses but for now I’m going to bask in the glow of this sweet, sweet experience.

I think it is time to pop that cork!

Best Wishes!

1973, AP # 74

| Cindy Anderson

A Strong Desire

The older I get the stronger my desire to explore and experience the many forms of art. I’ve been very fortunate to have the opportunity to attend numerous classes—each one exposing me to techniques or philosophies I have not tried.

One of the classes I attended was Pam Beal’s Minimalist Design, Maximum Impact. If you click on the link attached to the class name you will be taken to the blog post she shared once our class was complete. Within that post is numerous photos of her own work as well as the work of her students. Photos # 7, 8 and 10 show a few of my projects. Photo # 8 is the subject of today’s story.

Let’s Begin!

1973 was the year I graduated from high school. My graduating class contained 400+ students—way too many to remember them all by name.

Our official school colors were cardinal and grey. Often times they were referred to as red and grey by our cheerleaders. I can still recall one of the chants—

Red and grey,

red and grey,

fight, fight!

The Name Is…

Recently I put finishing touches on a small art quilt started while attending Pam Beal’s class.

After adding the last detail I always give my art quilts a name. Sometimes the process turns very slowly—in this instance it was quick and painless.

My Assistant

My husband is very familiar with my class colors and the year of my graduation. When I proudly shared my finished piece he instantly named the quilt

1973

in honor of my high school graduation and my class colors.

1973
1973, AP # 74

Distinguishing Features

Pam Beal’s quilts primarily contain straight line piecing. On occasion she adds an element of surprise through circles or curved pieces.

Following in Pam’s footsteps, 1973 was assembled with geometric, straight-line shapes. Added for pizazz were two gently curved strips—one each in the upper and lower quadrants.

These wavy lines add interest and movement by drawing your eye from one side to the other. Pam emphasized that a well-balanced piece will

keep your eye moving.

One way of providing movement is to

bring your elements (i.e. colors, piecing, quilting) off the page,

or in this case, off the mini quilt.

I think 1973 has achieved that feature through the addition of those strips.

Color Pallet

Since the theme of the class was minimalism I kept my color pallet simple. Chosen were grey, both light and dark; fuchsia; white and black. The grey tones are not part of my normal color family. In fact, grey is one of my least favorite colors. Given that this class was supposed to help me reach outside my comfort zone I made the decision to challenge my norms by adding colors unusual to me.

Another Door

Minimalist Design, Maximum Impact taught me the qualities of a well-balanced art piece. Learning these traits opened my eyes to new opportunities to analyze my own work. These revelations, in essence, swung open another door.

Doorway Features

Just as with Blue Door  this mini art piece also reflects the imagery of a doorway.

  • The doorway was assembled using strategically placed rectangles of color.
  • Standing outside looking in you will notice a window made from fuchsia cotton fabric.
  • Radiating from the window is additional rectangular shapes fashioned from a soft grey, more fuchsia and white. These added fuchsia and white fabrics give the door interest.
  • Emphasizing the image of a door knob is the oversized silver snap.
  • Strips of fuchsia colored cotton lead your eye to the outer right edge of my piece. By leading your eye in that direction I am enticing you to reach for and turn the door knob.
  • To add even more interest and encouragement of motion I added hand quilting. The stitched lines in and around the door bring your focus to the opportunity for discovery. An open door can lead to new and exciting experiences.
  • The grey stitches reaching from the left edge outward to the right give my piece even more movement. A movement that should also tease you to open wide the door.

The Final Details

1973

  • Measures: 11 7/8” L x 9 3/8” W
  • It Contains: Cotton fabrics
  • Is bound and backed with: Black fabric
  • Is sandwiched with: Warm & Natural Batting

In Conclusion

This was the second of many art quilts to develop during the Minimalist Design, Maximum Impact class. I will continue to reveal the other ones in future posts.

I hope that you have enjoyed reading about and seeing my latest art piece. Perhaps the tips shared will help you when analyzing your own works of art.

Please Share!

If there were aspects of my quilt or techniques that you found interesting, please share those thoughts. I learn so much from your comments.

Thank You!

Thank you for visiting! I look forward to our next opportunity.

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