Paper and Threads

I have multiple creative passions and I decided that this month I was going to enjoy sewing things that were on my "To Do List" for too long.  I still did quick daily drawings after breakfast, but when I came home from my morning volunteer sessions, I dedicated myself to my sewing machine.  

Sewing was my first real passion and I made clothes for myself and my children, with household and gift items beginning in my high school days.  In 1980 I started quilting and fell in love with hand stitching patchwork, applique, and the final quilting.  After many hours at work, I loved the slow pace of stitching in the evenings.  I even carried around a small plastic bag with fabric pieces, needle, thread and scissors and made a lap size scrap quilt for myself while watching my childrens' competitive swim practices.  This is my favorite of many quilts because of the hours spent hand quilting it, and my husband insisted that we hang it in our apartment.  I have a "Threads" category on my blog for the occasional textile entries.

So far this week I made 5 pillows.  The middle one was made from a piece of Mario Fortuny fabric purchased in Venice during our 50th wedding anniversary visit there.  Twenty five years earlier I bought another Fortuny fabric in Venice and wanted another pillow to remember our visits.  

I also finally made a quilted piece for our dining room table with 3 small pieces of aboriginal fabric that my friend Bunny brought back for us from her trip to Australia and New Zealand.  I loved how they looked cut and reassembled, and just did simple machine quilting on the seamlines. 

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More of my "after breakfast" line of action drawings.  My models are photo images from The Human Form in Action and Repose by Phil Brodatz and Dori Watson (1966).  I use one-quarter of a page of scrap copy paper, draw a quick line of the gesture/action in pencil, and then draw the full figure with ink and a gel pen.  I cut out the painted figures and collage them in my sketchbook.  The pencil lines are visible in the closeups in the final two images. 

Left Page of Spread

Right Page of Spread

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January 4^th is the 12^th Anniversary of my Blog, and I like to review my progress and goals for the next year at this time - an activity that was first recommended in an online art group when I first starting blogging. 

My main goals are to develop better drawing and painting skills on paper, and dye-painting and surface design on fabric.

1. Take Classes to Keep Me Inspired and Motivated:

Progress: I took classes for 2 semesters this year at Fashion Institute of Technology (Comic Book Illustration and Figure Drawing), Sketchbook Skool (Whimsical and Watercolor Rules) and Sketchbook Revival - a 28 day online class with 28 artists. I also took several half day classes, including a sculpture class at MoMA and several textile surface design classes at Quilt Festival.

Goals:

Take classes in the Spring and Fall Semesters at FIT and online classes in Sketchbook Skool (Drawing People and Travel Journals are planned). 

Participate in Prime Time classes at MoMA, when available, and other short classes planned by Urban Sketchers.

Look for other classes, either online or locally, as they are announced.   

2. Maintain a Community of Art Friends

Progress: I continued to sketch with Urban Sketchers, Central Park Sketching and Art Meetup Group, and Battery Park City Figure Al Fresco when my schedule permitted. In addition I attended many local museum and gallery exhibits, and art auction previews with my artist friends.

Goals:  

Schedule art adventures throughout the year - to include museum visits, gallery visits, Master Drawing Week gallery hop, Art on Paper Exhibit in March, and Christies and Sothebys auction previews.

Schedule regular sketching events in NYC - Urban Sketchers, etc. 

3. Deliberate Practice: Planned activities to practice specific skills

Progress: I had a Colles wrist fracture of my dominant hand in March and drawing with my non-dominant hand became my major "deliberate practice." I was born with a deformity of my non-dominant hand and doubted I could draw.  But I filled one entire sketchbook with pen and ink drawings and did many line of action figure drawings after breakfast, becoming somewhat ambidexterous. Urban Sketchers had a 30 day direct painting challenge in June and I loved painting without any pencil or ink lines. 

Goals:

Continue the Line of Action Drawings regularly - Art After  Breakfast. My main goal for 2019 is to draw as many bodies as possible, when moving, including dance and sports. 

Participate again in the June Urban Sketchers Challenge: Daily direct watercolor paintings.

Draw from my imagination at  least once per week - in my special sketchbooks.

Continue to draw hands and feet in a dedicated sketchbook at least once per month.

Finish my Axel and Alice illustrated story that I couldn’t finish in my FIT Illustration Class because of my wrist fracture.

4. Bookbinding

Progress: I made cased-in 140 lb watercolor sketchbooks for my daily sketching, two recycled books with watercolor paper (for summer travel and a trip to London), and assorted pamphlet and double pamphlet books for special projects. I am also teaching a friend how to bind books and so far we have made 3 book structures (pamphlet, double-pamphlet, and recycled watercolor sketchbook).

Goals:

Learn to make at least one new book structure this year - a month of researching the structure and methods, then make at least 2.  Several years ago I did this every month for 8 months, and loved it.

Continue to make my daily and travel sketchbooks, and watch for any new bookbinding classes in NYC.

Continue monthly bookbinding lessons with my friend. 

Study historical paste paper designs and make a new batch of paste paper. 

5. Special Project Ideas: I like to remain open to new challenges, and this list will shrink and grow as the year progresses.

Progress: I wanted to learn how to draw on toned paper and watched videos and selected and tested a variety of black and white pencils before my wrist fracture.  I also made a toned paper sketchbook and then decided to delay this project.  Just coping with the difficulty navigating each day for 6 weeks in a cast, plus rehab for several months was enough to keep me challenged.

Goals: 

Learn how to draw on toned paper.  

Quilt a dye-painted NYC skyline I started 5-6 years ago.  I painted the scene on plain white fabric with thickened dye and now finally will machine quilt it, following the actual structures and black thread to increase the range of values.   

Explore "drawing" line of action figures with my sewing machine and black thread.  I started to explore this several years ago, and would like to play some more. 

Make a scrap Christmas Quilt and use up lots of my fabrics that are leftover from years of Christmas projects.

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