On my first blog post, I showed a preview of the newest addition to my “Compartments” series. My intention was to continue the feel of the series but give the composition more “breathing room.” I felt that it was time for the compartments to have more space around them, to wander around more, kind of fall off the edge and be boundless.
I love the way it turned out. A lot of movement, brilliance and a vibrancy consistent with previous pieces.
The fabrics, with the exception of the black, are all artist dyed cottons.
This series began in April 2011. I had recently had major shoulder surgery, was in a shoulder sling and had spent a great deal of time reading whatever I could get my hands on. I came across an article on people in Africa living in abject poverty, slums made from truckloads of discarded papers which, surprisingly enough, were very colorful, adding a bit of happiness to the images. Many of those structures were rooms built one on top of another.
I was very limited with what I could accomplish, only having one hand with which to work for quite a while, and believing I that i would not be able to accomplish much, set aside a series of small exercises using strip pieced fabrics and began to deconstruct and reconstruct them. The synapses in my brain connected the two and the concept for “Compartments” was born. I began thinking about how many Americans had been driven from their own “American Dream,” and the idea grew. I love this series and have no idea where it will go, but it continues to intrigue me. I hope it intrigues you, too.
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Bye for now!