2024 - The year that was

#artvsartist2024

Snapshots of the creative pursuits I undertook in 2024.

Collages & a zine.

Digital illustrations.

Pen and ink illustrations. Marker and oil pastels to illustrate fruit.

Mending my clothes

A Journal Quilt.

A quilt experiment - 400 hand pieced inchies and 400 Suffolk puffs inspired by Bird of Paradise.

Needlelace leaves 

Wonder what 2025 will bring.

Fusion - Mini Quilt for the Modern meets Modern Challenge

In October 2020 The International Quilt Museum,Nebraska announced a mini quilt challenge, open to all. The challenge was to do with the Modern Meets Modern exhibition of  selected  Modern Quilt Movement quilts from the Museum's  collection representing the past 15+ years to be juxtaposed with groups of quilts made over 150 years ago. These antique quilts display cutting edge qualities for their time and can still look modern in the present day.

The museum chose four quilts to serve as catalysts for new work. I chose the four patch quilt as the catalyst for my  mini quilt which I called Fusion. It has elements of quilt making taken from the western tradition of quilt making such as the Engish Paper Piecing technique and the four patch block as well.

I then used techniques such as the Kantha technique of quilting ,the use of embroidery in the quilts made in India and like the quilts  made in India, the mini quilt was not bound but I used a faggoting stitch to hold the top of the quilt and the back of the quilt together.  

The tradition of making quilts was a thrift craft, whether in the east or the west. So all the fabric used to make the quilt top are garment off cuts. Layering two pieces of an old bed sheet made the batting for the quilt, inspiration for this came from the Kanthas of West Bengal which are made by stitching together layers of old cotton sarees.    

The kantha style of quilting which I did on the white patches give the surface a soft dimpled texture.    

The finished mini quilt - Fusion - 16 inches x 16 inches. Handmade and handquilted.

There were 116 entries for this challenge. Ten finalists which I didn't make it to, but it was an interesting challenge.

To see the ten finalists' quilts and all the mini quilts submitted click here.   

 

Blooming in my Garden

My first quilt ever - Blooming in my Garden is  completed and ready to submit to the India Quilt Festival 2021.

That's the quilt. 3' x 4'  entirely hand stitched except for the binding which was machine stitched by Govindraj, the friendly tailor at Darlington Bridge.

I started the quilt during the lockdown, so apart from designing the quilt I decided to make it an exploration of thrift and sustainability.

So the rules I set myself was to use what I had in my stash  be it fabric, embroidery thread etc. 

The only things I had to buy were a metre of unbleached cotton fabric and iron on paper fusing which I ran out of.

The lovely vivid colored cotton fabric are those I got from a friend who makes garments, the fabric cutoffs from her garment collections.

My garden which has different flowers in bloom as the seasons changed were the inspiration for my motifs.

Every little bit of appliqué,  quilting and joining of blocks was done by hand. I don't have a sewing machine and I couldn't justify buying one just for this project.

All traditional quilts in India are hand sewn be it the Kanthas of Bengal, the Kaudis and Kawandis of Karnataka. A unique artistic expression of the women who make them. Embroidered motifs of flora and fauna found in their environment. They use what they have - give old or torn clothes a new lease of life, a sustainable way of life.

My quilting too is to hold the many layers together so it's simple free-form quilting. The quilt Police will have a lot to say I'm sure.

I used the cartons of Monsoon Harvest  to cut out the paper foundation for the English paper piecing method of patchwork.

For the batting and the back of the quilt I used old bedsheets. Sheets with use and washing have become soft.

It's been a labour of love a project with so much to learn from.

The last big project for 2020.

I'm completing smaller projects for the festive season. A nativity garland to add a Christmas touch to my mum's home. Making batches of easy white chocolate fudge and sending in an application to a gallery which I hope will represent me.

Stay safe and well this holiday season.