Landscapes and My Love Affair With Trees

I take pictures--lots of pictures--pictures of animals, flowers, mushrooms, insects, birds, pond scum--you name it and I'll point a camera at it.  I especially like to zoom in and get the details that aren't evident at first glance.  Digital cameras are one of the world's greatest inventions.  They have saved me a fortune in film and developing and being able to download them to my computer and edit--well that's just the icing on the cake.

Trees are so interesting--the effects of the changes of the seasons, the intricacies of patterns on the bark and the variety of bark from the rough, somewhat spongy pine to the hard, tough oak, the peeling paper bark of the birch and sycamore.  I could go on and on, but you get the picture.  I have a thing for trees.  That's why they appear so often in my work.  I'm not good at taking people pictures--it seems awkward and intrusive, so I'm much more comfortable with scenery and inanimate objects.

I've done a number of landscape pieces and I'd like to share some of those.  My first landscape was "Peggy's Cove", based on a photo I took before digital cameras came along.  It's the lighthouse at Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia.  It was awarded 3rd place in Fine Arts at the 2007 GA National Fair and 1st place at the 2008 Southern Quilt Show in Warm Springs, GA.  It was also juried into the 2007 Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival in Virginia.  This piece was sold to a private collector.

My next landscape was based on a photo I took many years ago in New England.  "The Road Not Taken" has been donated to the planned Southeast Quilt Museum in Carrollton, GA.  It will be part of their first exhibit when the museum opens and then will be auctioned off to raise funds for the museum.  It was awarded 1st place in Fine Arts at the 2007 GA National Fair and 2nd place overall at the 2009 Southern Quilt Show.  It was also juried into the 2008 Denver Nat'l Quilt Festival and the AQS Nashville Quilt Show.

"Smoky Mountain High" is based on another photo from many years ago in the Smoky Mountains.  It received an Award of Merit at the 2010 GA Nat'l Fair Fine Arts competition.  I've entered it in the upcoming Columbus Artists Guild show in Columbus, GA.  The show opens Sunday, June 10th and runs through June 23rd at the Illges Gallery at the Columbus State University Corn Center.  I'm usually the only fiber artist in the show.  I'm really in some great company with many very talented painters, sculptors, and potters.

"Still Standing" came about because I made this totally cool puff paint tree when I was working on my "Bonsai" piece.  It didn't work for that piece, so I kept it, knowing it would eventually tell me where it needed to go.  After a couple of years, I finally got around to making a home for it.  This piece is not based on a photo.  I just put it together based on the tree.  It was awarded 2nd place in Fine Arts at the 2011 GA Nat'l Fair.

"Where The Pavement Ends" is my latest work.  It is also based on a photo I took near my home--one of many, many photos I took of this spot.  I snapped it in all four seasons and at different times of day.  I must have at least 50 shots.  The scene intrigued me and I love the play of light and shadows on the road.  I think this is my best work, thus far.

 I used a technique that is somewhat like the confetti landscapes by Noriko Endo, but in order to keep control of all the little bits of fabric (generally about 1/4 inch) I applied a fusible to the back of the fabric, then cut it into itty bitty pieces and placed each one individually.  I was very pleased that it really does look like leaves, grass, etc.  Of course, the tree trunks, road, and sign are made from larger pieces of fabric.

My husband has a room reserved for me at a nice institution, but I think as long as I continue to cook something now and again, he won't send me away.  Although, he did discover this morning that I'm working on another piece using this same technique--oops!