My studio is where I feel most at home. It's a place where I can dance around, sing, talk to myself, swear, drop things on the floor. I can express myself without worrying about having nice manners. I never need to dress up to spend a day in the studio. Blue jeans or pajamas, it's all good. "Home Turf" is a depiction of the free-motion quilting foot on my sewing machine. It was made using cut up pieces of hand-dyed fabrics, layered together and stitched with free motion quilting. Finished size 18"w x 36"h
Homes of bees are enclosed and secure structures that cling to trees. Human beings learn such wisdom and build our homes. However, there have been reports of bees disappearing. The reasons of their disappearance are varied. Without bees, it would be an ecosystem tragedy. The impact could be extensive. There will be no more honey for us to eat. Moreover, ecological disasters have devastating effect on wildlife. Unfortunately, human beings have not found a way to resolve the problem. For a long time, I have been concerned about these lovely insects. Let us pray for bees and protect their hives. Hope they will find their way home! A news report from South Carolina said that local residents spra
I’ve always been a homebody. Even though I love to travel, home is my favorite place. It is a sanctuary from external stress and demands, a place I feel complete. I also love solitude, and home gives me space to be alone. I can contemplate, create, relax, whatever I want. In my home I feel peace and contentment; I have all I need. I chose a shell to represent my home, my cocoon from the world. It is minimalist and yet plenty. “Sanctuary” is constructed of black and white cotton fabric stitched with four pastel rayon threads. The shell is appliqued on the background. I purposefully chose black and white to illustrate the contrast between home and the world outside. The world is chaotic: all c
This was a great first challenge to set, thanks Martha! As we had 3 generations living together in one home at the time, I got out the dye sticks and textile markers and asked those who wanted to write or draw anything they wanted about "home''. Miss 6 wrote "this is home not that" part of which supplied the title. Our young family of 4 have since found and moved into their new "home" and are very happy to have a place to nest! While home is a physical location that we become attached to, it is so much more in terms of our mental health. Over the drawings I stencilled the addresses of our previous homes. This was then painted, machine quilted and a giant word 'home' was added to finish the
I was so inspired by our trip to Los Angeles this spring! One of the highlights of our visit was an evening tour of The Stahl House. Built in the 1950's, it became an iconic representation of modern architecture. This particular home has been the setting of many films (Why Do Fools Fall in Love, Playing by Heart, the Marrying Man..plus music videos and many print ads). We were lucky enough to have our tour during sunset. Watching the lights start twinkling on was magical. My piece includes commercially printed cotton, hand-dyed and overprinted cotton, and strips of men's shirting fabric from the 1960's given to me by a high-end window dresser from Worth Ave, Palm Beach (my tip of the ha
I've moved around a number of times in my life and each time there have been special parts of my experience that stand out in my memories - experiences that are often marked by the natural world around me - the seasonal cycle of the pond, violets and lilacs in Pennsylvania, the beach life, sea beans and mangos in Florida, flowering dogwoods and wild turkeys in Connecticut, and more.... I've lived in California on 3 separate occasions and each has been highlighted by unique aspects of the natural world. In the early 90's I went to work at the University of California in Santa Cruz, situated among the redwoods overlooking the breathtaking Monterey Bay. Part of the time I was there, I had a won
Considering the importance I give to the place where I live, it was natural that I felt I needed to make a map of my immediate area. So this is it. My home is marked, and I may add names to some of the other places within a few minutes walk away - theatre, cinema, bus station, etc. This piece is not quite finished - that will be done next week. But because I am going away tomorrow for a few day's teaching, and I am nearly there with the piece, I didn't want to leave it 'unposted' for another week. Alicia Merrett, Home Patch, 18" by 36" (when finished). Pieced, with a little fused appliqué.
Inspired by the new crop of pictures from the area around the defunct Fukushima power plant, I decided to make a piece involving a post human environment. It began with a bunch of rulered lines on silk, and as I filled in the spaces, I tried to evoke the moist wildness of nature taking over concrete. I used several kinds of soft, liquid media to get subtle color variations and patterns to contrast with the hard angles. I made sure to include rusty browns to further the illusion of vegetation over metal. Urban Decay, 36x17", 2016
Where I live - my house, my surroundings, my location - is very important to me. I have only resided for any length of time in three places: Buenos Aires, London (both huge conurbations), and now in Wells, the smallest city in England. I spend a lot of time in my studio at home, and the view from it, the big skies I can see above the garden from my windows, and the music I have on all the time, are part of my sense of place and belonging. Here, so near to the countryside, I also get the continual feeling of being on a planet – mankind’s only home – and our need to protect it.
I find it ironic to write a blog post on “Home” immediately after I evacuated mine in a hurricane. One thing is sure: leaving your home in the face of a natural disaster is the litmus test for what is important. The first time I had to flee a storm was three weeks after I moved to Florida. Given only a few hours to leave, I frantically gathered my computer, journals and photo albums. I probably would have taken more if I were completely unpacked from the move. My worry was mostly about possessions. It makes sense: I was single and they were the main connection to my memories and my past. I clearly remember locking the door and thinking I might return to nothing. This time was different. My h
I was slightly disheartened by this first challenge of our new cycle, the image of dozens and dozens of artworks featuring little cute houses jumped to mind. I certainly don't need to add another one of those to the pile- however- face palm! I did an entire huge piece called Home on the Reef featuring sea creatures and their chosen habitats. here's a detail with the clownfishes in their anemone condo. So, why was it fun to make that and I was cringing about another interpretation? Maybe, I guess, it's because the majority of animal homes are constructed organically, instead of the angular boxes that us humans, especially in the Western Hemisphere, tend to live in. I decided to look at this i
