Beach Retreat

Recently we all spent a couple of days at Connie’s new beach house.  Connie (and Mike) are always great host/hostess so a good time was had by all.  As housewarming gifts, we each made a placemat with a “beach” theme.  It was fun to watch her grandchildren critiquing them and picking a favorite.

Linda Minton

 

Liz Broussard

 

Mary Ann Littlejohn

 

Nancy Dickey

 

Susan King

Gossip Challenge

Connie Fahrion started this challenge based on the old game "gossip" or "telephone". She chose a photograph she took while on a winter-time retreat at the childhood home of Liz Broussard in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana.  Bayou Teche, runs along the back of the property. The size she chose was 6” x 18” landscape orientation

Bayou Teche

After her initial interpretation, she passed her quilt to the next person in the rotation through the group.  Each person only saw the piece immediately before her and did an interpretation on it. 

Connie Fahrion

I decided to work with squares and rectangles to flesh out tree trunks and leaves using silk fabrics on a cotton Ikat-like fabric.  I based my composition on another one I created of the same scene worked with dyed and painted coffee filters and thread trash.

 

Liz Broussard

Because I was so enamored with Connie's piece, it was difficult for me to not duplicate it!

I went with a literal translation of a stark, dreary winter's day on the bayou.  Several layers of chiffon and netting were burned to create barren trees and blowing leaves.

 

Susan King, “Thinking of Fall”

I had a vague impression of swampish trees and leaves and perhaps cool temperatures from looking at Liz Broussard's piece.  Liz was also very specific in pointing out the one or two spots of red that she put in her piece.  Based on that, I interpreted my piece with red autumn leaves pushed directionally in a cool wind.

 

Nancy Dickey, “Autumn Melody”

I wanted to capture the "feel" of Thinking of Fall so I based my design on Susan's mottled tan background, her top left to bottom right sweeping movement, and her red (leaves) color. Her addition of tiny gold beads added detail so I quilted in the small areas of my checkered background. I interpreted Susan's thin wispy twig branches by couching Razzle Dazzle for my long delicate wind currents.

 

Mary Ann Littlejohn, "Morning Song"

When  I saw Nancy's work, I felt the melody flowing across the piece and associated it with written music and the treble clef.

Linda Teddlie Minton "Summer Wind"

Mary Ann's musical theme brought to mind some old children's illustrations of Wind.  I picked out her baby-pinks and blues to repeat in my piece.  This was a challenging piece for me, because of the unusual size and shape, but I loved the results from the whole group.

Cheryl Johnson

Linda's was so wonderful I almost had too many ideas.  I didn't know the title at the time but I wanted to carry over movement and some of the color she created in her piece.  I asked myself what could move around on the wind and came up with the bubbles.   After all who doesn't love seeing what shape and color their bubble will come out.

Fish Challenge

Periodically, our group decides to do a challenge. .  Our first challenge took place in 2009.  The guidelines, which were selected by pulling words out of paper bag, were:

Size:    9”x12” portrait
Fabric:  a piece of the same chartreuse silk
Theme:  Fish

“Mola Fish”
Nancy Dickey

I wanted to try a contemporary mola technique for my Fish piece. The two fish images are based on a barracuda shape. The silk coral and other leaves were from my imagination. Since most underwater landscapes tend to be horizontal, as are fish, I found the vertical format to be more dramatic and challenging. “Mola Fish” was created with cotton and silk fabrics, reverse appliqué, hand embroidery, machine quilting, and satin-stitched edges.

“Koi Pond”
Connie Fahrion

A lot of my experimental work has to do with thread trash application so I used this challenge to work beyond my limit with thread trash.  I simply wanted to see what it would look like if I laid on thread trash beyond my normal expectation.  So my goal became to distort the composition with thread trash until I felt like I had lost it.  It was a real luxury and pleasure to be able to do it.”

Susan King

When we selected the subject for this challenge (fish), I was thrilled because for years
I had kept both salt and freshwater aquariums.  My intention with this piece was to
portray the idea of a fish "sort of" contained in an aquarium.  This piece was done with raw-edge applique and used both cotton and silk fabric.

“Just the Two of Us”
Mary Ann Littlejohn

Since I am a Pisces, the fish image is almost a part of me.  Using my astrological sign was a good place to start.  I enjoyed working in some dyed cheesecloth and machine quilting the fantasy plants.

“The Book of Fish”

Linda Teddlie Minton

Incorporates a digitally altered photograph of the Grand Canyon, cotton, silk, Dye-Na-Flow paints, machine quilting, and hand embroidery.  The irregularly-shaped piece is faced rather than traditionally bound.

High Fiber @ The Arts Alliance Center at Clear Lake

“Speaking in Color” was juried in and has been awarded a Juror’s Choice prize. 
Opening Night is this Thursday at 6:30.  We would love to see you there.

Location:
2000 NASA Parkway,
Nassau Bay, TX 77058

Our Beginnings

When FiberVoices was created two years ago, we decided to create a joint project to challenge each of our abilities working in fiber and launch our new group.  We selected a copy-right free photo and divided it into 6 segments, each member working on a different segment.  The idea was to see if we could work to group- established guidelines, and cement individual construction methods and techniques into a cohesive whole.  Working with a combination of raw-edge, hand and machine appliqué, we also incorporated piecing, weaving, painting and dye work into the mix.  We feel we fulfilled our goals for this project, and we are already at work on a larger challenge aiming for completion in 2011.

“SPEAKING IN COLOR”
Each square section is 24” x 24”.  Each quilt was mounted and wrapped on gallery-stretched canvas.

Mary Ann  Littlejohn

Nancy B. Dickey

Connie Fahrion

 

Susan Fletcher King

guest artist  Cheryl Johnson

Linda Teddlie Minton