liz's stitch in time

August Journal Quilt , end of summer and empty nest syndrome

2011-10-02T01:57:00.000-07:00

This is the last of the Journal Quilts with text in. It wasn't the piece I intended to do, but was an opportunity to get to grips with my new printer make a little wholecloth quilt to fulfill the JQ brief and come to terms with the end of summer and return of youngest son to college. I've had this little drawing pinned on my wall for many years and the faces of the figures always make me smile - I think its the curly mouths! I had to define the lines a bit and then filled areas with more colour. I added a one inch half triangle border and repeated the little child figure which I think is Ralph. There is another tiny little figure on one of the planets and I wonder if that is his older brother - banished to the ends of the world!
I treated some old cotton sheeting with bubble jet set and then printed the whole design and machine stitched it. There were random pencil dots which I stitched with french knots. It still makes me smile.
I spent yesterday in the very hot exhibition room at the Bristol Guild. It was the last day and thank you to my friends who visited and also to all the other visitors who showed interest. The lichens designs and french knot embroideries seem to interest people which is great. I think I will make another large lichen applique hanging soon.

May Journal quilt 11th hour

2011-06-21T10:14:00.002-07:00

Having agreed to produce a quilt a month for the Journal Quilt project this was an eleventh hour piece. I made it even worse for myself by using the contents of a " challenge" bag of fabrics and threads - pink is not usually me at all but I managed to complete this with a nice grey background - more me. This is the last of the circles theme. The next four pieces will have text in them.

Nine trees.

2011-04-03T09:55:00.000-07:00

Another journal quilt for the month of April inspired again by the tree of life image.
Chocolate wrappers were bonded on the background, hand made khadi paper from Ahmedabad was mono printed with acrylic paint and the circles were completed with silk bonded with scrim rubbed with gold markal stick on the surface. The trees were machine stitched and the surface machined with a gold thread grid. The threads were left unstitched across the circles.

Kalamkari artist, Ahmedabad, Gujarat

2011-03-28T14:39:00.000-07:00

Visited this extremely skilful kalamkari artist in Ahmedabad recently. His work was beautifully delicate and lyrical.

Tree of Life journal quilt for March

2011-03-28T09:59:00.000-07:00

This is the second little journal quilt I've done. For some reason the first February journal quilt has posted to a different blog. It can be seen if my website is accessed and you click on the link on the contact page. This is a mystery to me!
I spent a wonderful 8 days in India in February,mainly Gujarat, looking at a lot of textiles and art. This little tree of life piece is appliqued on silk which is first hand quilted, then machine stitched over the top of the applique. It was inspired by a wonderful Tree of Life window in Ahmedabad. I bought a lovely scarf made of two pieces of sari silk. One side is a single ikat type weave and the other is block printed. The whole scarf has then been stitched completely with rows of running stitch in stripes of two colours. I tried this technique on the background of my little tree.

February Journal Quilt

2011-02-05T04:29:00.000-08:00

I decided to take part in The Contemporary Quilt Group's journal challenge. This year the pieces are 10 inches square. I found an old paper bag while clearing up the detritus from the kitchen table and used it to make transfer prints on poly satin and organza. The bag had a faded tree design with a flower head on it. Using the enlarged flower head image, I made a template to mask out transfer paint on poly satin and organza. The paper bag was also bonded on to muslin. Machine stitched, mainly. It reminds me of my favourite dusk, end of the day landscapes.
But - the snowdrops are out - the temperature has risen above 10 degrees.

Magritte the Quilter and Gaudi

2011-01-28T12:48:00.000-08:00

A friend sent me a postcard of a painting by Magritte. L'Incendie, The Blaze. It reminded me of a tree I could see from my kitchen window across the valley in the last days of Autumn last year. I love the colour - so looking forward to some colour again after this grey, cold winter.
I dug out the embellisher and constructed the fabric with wool, snippets of sheer fabrics, appliqued cotton for the trees and machine embroidery.

The little blue panel is based on a section of Gaudi inspired mosaic. The fabric is dyed cotton, with reverse applique and hand embroidery.

Today I visited an exhibition of work by Bethan Ash at a local venue Prema, in Uley near Stroud.
The pieces looked so vibrant in the setting of the old chapel and were very well displayed, in two rooms. The pieces on the ground floor were mounted on the rich red painted walls which really enhanced the colour and pattern. Then we went to see an exhibition of paintings by David Tress in the Victoria Art Gallery, Bath. His landscapes are painted on thick layered paper with equally thick layers of paint. The effect is very striking. Some pieces are inscribed with a sharp implement to make disturbing marks across the image. The way he uses colour and light really gave me something to think about. I had a lovely day.

Corded quilt commission

2009-08-10T07:03:00.000-07:00

Just completed a corded quilt for a commission. The fabric and cord was white cotton and the whole thing has been backed with fine cotton. The quilt was a copy of an original made by a relative of my client called Ellen Peacey,1841 - 1911. The design is arranged in a log cabin fashion, with the centre squares on point, and subsequent strips being decorated with hearts leaves, tulips and other flowers. The border is finished with a scalloped edge. The whole quilt measures about 96" x 96"and has been washed to give an aged crinkled effect.

Demonstrating at Art in Action, Waterperry Gardens, Oxfordshire

2009-06-12T15:04:00.000-07:00

Art in Action
Organiser: Jeremy Sinclair
96 Sedlescombe Road
London SW6 1RB
Tel 020 7381 3192
Fax 020 7381 0605
Email info@artinaction.org.uk
www.artinaction.org.uk
Organised by The School of Economic Science
(Registered Educational Charity No 313115)
11 Mandeville Place, London W1U 3AJ

PRESS RELEASE April 2009

Nature in Art

Having had a hugely successful second visit last year, the Nature in Art Trust will field a further group of topflight demonstrators at Art in Action 2009. Nature and wildlife lovers especially will love their work, which celebrates the inexhaustible variety of nature and the many inspired ways people have of responding to it in the field of art and craft.

Set in the grounds of Waterperry House and Gardens, Art in Action, Britain’s premier art festival, will run from 16-19 July, offering a watching public of over 22,000 access to the company and work of nearly 250 demonstrators and performers. More than 12 different disciplines are set up in airy pavilion tents and so arranged that visitors can get in close to watch beautiful work in the making, ask questions, discuss inspiration and techniques, and even buy or commission work. For those who want to have a go, there are also practical classes run by excellent professionals - for children as well as adults. Add to this the presence of a Market of finely crafted goods, other sites specially for artists’ materials and techniques, publications and societies, plus music, storytelling, dance demonstrations, NADFAS art lectures, tours of the famous gardens and of the frescoes recently completed in the House, it’s no wonder some people say one visit is not enough!

The eight Nature in Art demonstrators are members of the world’s first museum dedicated to art inspired by the colours and forms of the natural and wildlife world. Each year 70 artists work in residence, adding to the museum’s impressive collection at Wallsworth Hall near Gloucester, and demonstrating to the school groups who regularly visit their inspirational education centre.

This year’s team comprise Alison Ingram, whose compelling bird paintings are set in kaleidoscopic, marquetry-like landscapes; Karl Taylor, who juxtaposes precisely observed birds and other small creatures against man-made forms; Richard Tratt, who feelingly paints the English landscape and wild habitats; and self-taught, award-winning Anna Knights, whose close-up botanical watercolours have an immediacy and vitality that transcend tradition. Flowing leaf forms and flower head carvings in wood will be demonstrated by Robert Cox; while stoneware and porcelain clay are Jill Moger’s medium for a host of animal forms, mainly reptiles - all amazingly endearing!

Nature-inspired textiles will figure too: Liz Brooke Ward’s galactic machine and hand-stitched quilts amalgamate lichen and seaweed-like patterns, sometimes blended with calligraphy; nearby, batik maestro and teacher Marie-Therese King will use this ancient art to create vivid, rainbow-coloured paintings of the natural world. Not to be missed!

General Information
The first Art in Action took place in 1977, featuring around 50 artists. Since then it has grown significantly and is now an annual pilgrimage for anyone interested in the visual arts. Visitors can learn or buy from the 150 artists and craftsmen who recreate their studios in one of the many Art in Action marquees and demonstrate their expertise in Painting, Sculpture, Drawing and Printmaking, Ceramics, Calligraphy and Illustration, Glass, Metalwork and Jewellery, Nature in Art, Textiles, Woodwork and (new this year) Mexican Arts. At Waterperry, visitors can also learn new creative skills at practical classes set up separately for both children and adults and run by some of the UK’s most prestigious art colleges including University of the Arts (Wimbledon, Chelsea, & Camberwell Colleges of Art) and the Prince’s School of Traditional Art. Following a class, enthusiasts can purchase art materials and publications to take home and “get started” or just browse the Craft Market where more than 100 designer-makers sell quality goods.

In addition, Art in Action offers fine music, performing artists and storytelling for children. There are lectures organised by NADFAS (National Association of Decorative and Fine Art Societies) in Asian Textiles, Exotic Woods and Furniture, Victorian Art and Glass and Early English pottery. There are guided tours of the beautiful Waterperry gardens and also of the exquisite frescoes on the walls of Waterperry House that were completed in 2006 - a 10-year project. There is also a wide range of refreshments: cream teas from the Pear Tree Restaurant, a good selection of wines, champagne and Pimm’s served on the lawn in front of the house and numerous organic and artisan food stalls throughout the site. Art in Action is truly a celebration of creativity as well as a great day out. People come year after year – often, they say, as much for the atmosphere as for the works on show

Event details

Venue: Art in Action
Waterperry House, Near Wheatley
OXFORD OX33 1JZ

Website: www.artinaction.org.uk

Tel: 020 7381 3192

Date/time: 16-19 July 2009, open 10am-5.30pm daily

Tickets: Adults £15 (Booked online £14.00)
Senior citizens £12 (Booked online £11.00)
Concessions £7 (Booked online £6.00)
Child (9-17 years) £5 (Booked online £4.00)
Under-9s free
Family and season tickets available

Car parking free
Party rates for pre-booked minibuses and a limited number of coaches by arrangement – contact the office (020 7381 3192) in advance.

Note to editors
Art in Action has an extensive photo library available for the press – please telephone or email your requirements.

Further information
Press contact: Anna Arthur
artinactionpress@googlemail.com
020 8681 7123 / 07733 221 949

Fabric of Life Exhibition, Bristol Guild.

2009-03-19T14:39:00.000-07:00

This is my first exhibition with the Bristol based textile group, Spectrum.

PRIVATE VIEW Gallery GUILD
Spectrum The Fabric Of Life
25 April / 16 May 2009 Mon to Sat 10.00 / 17.00
Veronica Broadley. Liz Brooke Ward.Liz Hewitt. Pat Bishop. Joan Bowie
Ann Morley. Kay Grayston. Di Goodison. Patricia Brownen
Catherine Millar. Ann Rippin. Tissie Weeks

Figurative and abstract work in two and three dimensions
from award-winning mixed
media/textile artists.

Come for a private view
11.00 / 16.00
Saturday 25 April 2009
68/70 Park Street
Bristol BS1 5JY