Art Quilter goes to School

 When the Art department at my daughter's high school saw her Starry Night project they wanted to see how a machine quilting frame would let you draw with the needle. So I arranged to bring the 6 foot ART Quilter frame, Table and JUKI TL98 P to the school' s year 12 ART Class for the day. 

We started with some Klimt swirls, first on paper 

and then on the frame. We tried a variety of repeated patterns from nature too.

 Then we moved on to Kandinsky circles.

 The students cut out concentric circles in fleece and fabric

 which we raw edge appliquéd directly onto the black background fabric on the frame.

 It was a small class so each student could design and appliqué their own circle.

I liked how each one was so different. The students enjoyed choosing the different fabric and threads.

At the end of the session, we took the practice piece off the Art Quilter frame and each student received a slice of the day's thread play to put in their art books.

It was fun to see students who were not familiar with sewing machines or quilting frames be able to design and complete a project all in one day!

Kandinsky Circles

  "Music is the ultimate teacher ... Colour is the keyboard, the eyes are the harmonies, the soul is the piano with many strings, the artist is the hand that plays, touching one key or another to cause vibrations in the soul.

Wassily Kandinsky 1866 - 1944   

influential Russian painter, father of Abstract Art

Kandinsky was fascinated by the relationship between music and painting. His understanding of the emotional power of form and colour can be inspirational to quilters too.

Yellow - warm, cheeky and exciting, disturbing, loud, sharp trumpets, high fanfares
Blue - deep, inner, peaceful, heavenly, light blue flute, mid-blue Cello, darkest blue Organ
Green - stillness, peace with hidden strength, quiet drawn out violin
White - pregnant with possibility, harmony of silence, a pause that breaks the melody
Black - extinguished, a final pause
Red - alive growing, energy, glowing passion, sure strength, pure joy, the sound of Trumpets, Tuba, deep notes on the Cello, high clear Violin
Orange - radiant health, church bells, alto voice, violin, singing tone
Violet - rare, royal, sad, forlorn, Bassoon, English Horn