Art Work by Meadowood Stitched Workshop Participants

Participants in my Meadowood Stitched workshop created some lovely pieces on Saturday at Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens.

We worked with a large variety of specimens collected by staff from the wonderful gardens. Making choices among all the wonderful seeds, berries and leaves was really difficult.

The first photo is of a buckeye seed pod and dogwood leaves. The next one is a real play with colors to add some intrigue to the pecan and its outer husk.

The next are persimmons with their lush colors just as they begin ripening.

The first set of leaves are from the fothergila shrub in my garden that turns many different shades in the fall.

And the last lovely piece is a compound sumac leaf.

It was a glorious day, we sat outside for a picnic lunch on the veranda.

If you have a chance to take a class at DSBG, the set up is lovely, and you are bound to enjoy it.

Please leave a comment and let the ladies know how much you enjoyed their work.

Nancy

New Work Underway

Last fall I collected several different interesting acorns at Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens. One was this funny little one with a really big, intricate cap, called a Burr Oak. It is a large acorn that reminds me of a little boy with a big shaggy knitted cap with fur brim.

The photo at left is Photoshopped. I find that the Posterize filter really helps in planning different segments for value and color changes.

















The sketch is my design for creating a new piece. It will be the dickens to get the templates cut and the tendrils inked. Wish me luck!



Nancy

From Floral to Fabric

Saturday, I taught my first workshop on the techniques that I use for my Seed Play series. The workshop at Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens was one of the educational offerings accompanying my solo exhibition. The participants did a great job with a complex process and a limited amount of time.

Here are some of the results at the end of the day. Love the way this image captures the inside of the seed pod on the right. This piece was based on the trumpet vine seed pods.

This interesting piece is based on the fruit and leaves of the Stauntonia which is a vine growing up a post on the veranda. It is a lovely pinkish color with maroon splotches. Susan Dunn-Lederhaas did a great job capturing the complex colors on this fruit form.
This is another piece based on the trumpet vine, with a nice capturing of the ridges along each side and the speckling of the pods.

This delicate piece captures the iris seed pods and those are the cute little seeds over to the right. Nice rhythm captured in the leaves.

This artist captured the fall leaves of the bur oak. I really like the way she layered the leaves and the negative spaces created by the spaces between the leaves.

Cindy went for an impressionist rendition of the bur oak leaves. I love the rhythm and the flow of the colors.

Our only trained artist chose a really challenging inspiration. She is well on her way to create a great piece inspired by the Beauty Berry. Don't you love the colors and the lines of the leaves? Great movement and rhythm.
This piece was inspired by a banana leaf. Love the rib and the spots and browning areas. A perfect leaf would be so boring in comparison.
Annette captured the grace and liveliness of these colorful beans.

It was a great workshop location. Nice bright room, windows onto the garden, super hospitality and congenial participants. Hard to ask for anything better. The ladies did a remarkably good job on challenging tasks. I was blown away by how well they all did.

Don't you think they did well?

Nancy

SeedPlay Exhibition Hung!

Kousa: Another Dogwood's in Town

Wednesday my DH and I, with many of the staff at Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens, hung my solo show. I am delighted with how it looks at the venue. The galleries are to the right and left of the entry on the hall where the restrooms are. So many people will walk by them on the way to the necessaries. I have several new pieces in the show that have not been exhibited previously. I will show details of some of them here. Hope you enjoy. (Yes, they were my Quilt National entries.)

The top photo is of the Asian dogwood that is finding its way into our landscapes as a recommended replacement for our beautiful native dogwoods, as the natives are dying from a fungal disease. It blooms later and the berry is very different.


Mockingbird's Larder

The detail above is from a piece that celebrates the joyous color that the deciduous hollies provide throughout our gray winters. The berries ripen late so the birds find them welcome food for the late winter when other food is gone.


Echoes of Tulip's Summer

The tulip poplar is one of my favorite trees. It sheds its seeds for more than a year thereby better ensuring that some of them will find suitable soil and weather conditions to germinate and grow.

For me, the multiple ways that tree seeds use for reproduction provide a metaphor for the importance of diversity for a species' survival as conditions change. The lesson it teaches us about the importance of diversity for humans is one that we need to learn in the depths of our hearts, minds and souls.

Please wish me luck for my show that runs until November 14 and come see it if you are any where nearby Belmont NC.

Nancy

Whew! Finally Finished Quilt #4

Orchid Rhythms: Petals

Working under deadlines is something I keep promising myself to give up - for the year, for Lent, for any excuse at all. Somehow I sucker myself into them. While the events can be challenging, they are certainly invigorating. So I am REALLY invigorated at this time.

I can't wait to see all 28 fiber art pieces assembled together at the Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens this coming Thursday. We hang the exhibition on Thursday with the opening weekend Saturday and Sunday. From 12 - 4 PM each day we will be doing demonstrations, walk throughs and talks.

Orchid Rhythms: Buds

Here are some previews of several of the works. The assembled group of work by all seven members should be wonderful. I am really proud to have work with these great artists.

Orchid Rhythms: Stems and Leaves

These are details. Hope you like them. And we hope that lots of friends of orchids, fiber art, quilts, and ours will help us launch this collection.

Orchid Rhythms: Bud

To say I am finished is a bit of an exaggeration, I need to add labels, make the foam board hanger and sign each piece. But given the lousy weather, I should have time to do so before Thursday morning.

Happy quilting,

Nancy