Ellen Lindner: Art & Creativity

Do you know where I was when I took this picture?

Click any image for a larger view.

I was in Charlotte, NC, at the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art.  Don’t you love the mirrored sculpture out front?  Especially when seen in front of the old church and “The Green” behind it.

Charlotte has many wonderful art museums, and my host, Nancy Cook, made sure I got a nice taste of them. 

I was in town to give a lecture and to teach a class for the Charlotte Quilters’ Guild.  They gave me a very warm welcome, and created some wonderful art, as well!

The class was “Design Your Own Nature Quilt,” my favorite to teach.  In it, students bring their own inspiration photos, and after learning some design principles in the morning, come up with a plan for converting the photos to fabric.  Later, they cut pieces by eye and pin them into place.  By late afternoon they head home with their compositions almost ready for stitching.  It’s very exciting to see these images take shape so quickly!

Below, (L-R) Debra  and Judy hard at work. 

The photo below shows Debra’s results after three hours.  She did a very good job of editing out distracting details and showcasing only her favorite parts of her photo.

Judy’s composition is shown in-progress below.  A variety of fabric values allowed her to create depth within her left flower and she’ll add more with thread and/or pencil shading.  (The flower is about plate size.  Compare it to the camera at bottom right.)

Nancy got off to a great start with her mountain scene.  First, she drew directly onto her photo, to help identify the fabric shapes she’d need.

Next, she began to cut and place fabrics, and her mountains started to take shape.

Many more workshop photos to come in future posts!

Ellen Lindner