V9-6: Our Personal Viewpoints
Details from V9-5: Living Planet
When Viewpoints 9 first started 8 years ago, it would have been hard to imagine where we would be at this point in time. We've considered unique Sources of Inspiration, the Power of 9s, Constants and Variables, words and our Living Planet, while growing as artists and having the opportunity to exhibit around the world.
For those who have the opportunity to attend the European Patchwork Meeting week after next, don't miss our exhibit at Eglice Saint Louis in Ste-Marie-aux-Mines. Come say hello and enjoy selections from our Living Planet series.
What's next? For our next series, we take a step away from our past and try an exciting new format for V9-6: Personal Viewpoints. In this series, we will work larger, leaving behind our 2 month cycles. We will create 3 pieces during the next 18 months at 6 month intervals. Each artist will create a 60"H x 48"W, a 60"H x 30"W and a 30" square piece to a theme of their own choosing.
The artists have chosen the following themes for their three pieces:
Alicia Merrett - COLOUR SYMPHONIES
My textile work has been changing, and I am becoming oriented towards digital design. The designs are worked on my iPad and computer, going through many different stages and processes. The final results are then printed on fabric, layered and quilted.
Colour has been my passion since I started working in textiles. I now want to explore it further, and spend time experimenting. I am not planning specific ways or paths – I will continue to work improvisationally, and follow what my heart tells me to do.
Music has always been an inspiration and a muse in my compositions. Colour and music relate closely in my mind. So it seems appropriate to call the theme of my forthcoming work with Viewpoints 9, “Colour Symphonies”.
Betty Busby - The X Series
Connections are vital to life as we know it.
We relate to each other and our environment.
On a microscopic level, the bonds between organic and inorganic materials exist in thousands of different ways.
In this series of works, I'd like to explore interdependency in an abstract manner.
Diane Wright - Personal Journey I chose “Personal Journey” because my own has been a long, global, sometimes bumpy, but always enlightening and exhilarating one. Great fodder for thought. It also helps that along this long road I have amassed a lovely collection of textiles to include or be inspired by. A very happy place to be, indeed.
Lin Hsin-Chen - Line
It is not easy to do everything just following your heart. We cannot predict the future, but we can look back on the past, the things that we have experienced, bit by bit, the dots and lines are connected to form lines, or stitched together like a string. Lines do connect the extraordinary journey of life and explore the future. Just like the extending lines in my work, Deposit of Wisdom, they are prepared to receive wisdom and looking forward to blooming beautiful flowers.
Deposit of Wisdom
No matter you are from eastern or western, we are all pursuing happiness. Are we really happy? People should overcome adversity, and separate the wheat from the chaff. Go through the hardship of life, so that our heart will enjoy peace and ease, and pursue the carefree happiness.
Materials: commercial cottons, linen, acrylic paints, ribbon, Romanian threads
Techniques: Mola, hand appliqué, hand embroidered, hand quilted, acrylic dyeing
Kate Themel - Machines
One reason I've chosen machines is that I love shiny objects, gears, and interesting tools. So I feel like this topic will keep me engaged with multiple pieces over 18 months. Another reason for the machinery theme is that maybe I’m looking for order and functionality in a dysfunctional world.
Lisa-Marie Sanders - Memories My life has been affected by Alzheimer’s: I’m a friend, daughter, relative, caregiver. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, the disease affects 5.8 million Americans. Another statistic shows there are 16 million unpaid caregivers. It is the 6th leading cause of death in the United States. My experience with this disease has really challenged me to think about memories. I don’t want to focus on the disease, I want to focus on how memory defines us. Are we merely the sum total of our experiences? How do we maintain our dignity when we experience memory loss? And the quandary of the caregiver: how do we preserve positive memories of our loved ones when they are overlaid daily with difficult interactions? I’m drawn to this topic because it is so prominent in my life. Plus, I haven’t worked in a series before so I wanted to choose a broad topic that would give me room to experiment. The fact that memories are abstract and ephemeral also appealed to me when considering this artistic challenge.
Martha Wolfe – Recycle/Renew
In the process of making one of my recent quilts, I used an old family quilt. Taking it apart, I found remnants of clothing that had been used as batting. Suddenly it was no longer just a quilt, but a little piece of someone's life. Recycling is nothing new and is really at the heart of quilting. Fabric can hold so many stories. In this cycle I hope to embrace the narratives in some pieces of family clothing (like my mother’s wedding dress) and linens I’ve collected, and transform them, adding new life and meaning.
Misik Kim - Words
We express our thoughts in words.
It is the same as expressing thoughts as a work.
Same words, different meaning
Please think of your own words.
Sue Dennis - A Colourful World
Colour and shape in our natural and manmade worlds attract me. In my travels I often photograph scenes and objects with these characteristics. A Colourful World is my new series that will reference my photos, my memories of place, feelings and the freedom of artistic licence to play within the bounds of my title.
We're very excited about this new format and the opportunity it gives us to grow further as artists and as a group! We hope you will enjoy watching our progress and follow us on Instagram HERE or our Facebook page HERE where will be posting our weekly updates.
