Thursday, March 08, 2007

Since I got back from Bloomington I've been dealing with a sick husband and two sick cars, so it's been hectic to say the least. It seems like things may be looking up now however, and also Blogger has decided to work for me, so here are a few more pictures from Jane Sassaman's class at the IHQS.

The idea of the class was to choose a flower, sketch it in several different ways, and finally produce a very abstract version of it. When the flower is basically reduced to shapes you can then decide on a composition and then finally move to the sewing. In a two day class we only did the sketching and shape cutting. The first picture is of the shapes I had by the end of the class. Although I like the colors, the shapes are not finished, not even satisfactory, and just sort of thrown on a dark background. I need to do something with the flying saucer-like thing on the left, and the leaves need more detail--they currently resemble sting-rays. (I do have a plan for both these steps.) My flower is something called astrantia major which most people, including me, had never seen, but it's a very interesting plant with pointed petals surrounding a large puffy center. I can't even think of another flower to compare it to.

The second picture shows a classmate's work, much farther along, even with a good composition. And the third picture shows Jane helping someone refine her sketch/shape. I loved doing this and am looking forward to finishing the project after I get some other work out of the way.



8 comments:

allie aller said...

What a great concept for a workshop!
Thanks for the pictures...your piece is going to be great!

jenclair said...

Yes, thanks for sharing the pictures! What a great experience... I really like your flower and can't wait to see the changes you are contemplating.

Nellie's Needles said...

Looks and sounds like a fun and productive time. Can't wait to see your piece progress. I like the dark violet background. It "tames" the pinks.

Anonymous said...

What a fantastic class - you must be having a blast!

Deb Geyer said...

Looks like fun!

Rian said...

Sounds like a wonderful class! I would love this class, I have great difficulty with abstract and always admire seeing it. I can't wait to see your finished piece.

Deb Hardman said...

I took that same workshop here, from Jane when we had her up here in 2001. I felt I actually failed that class. I had trouble getting abstract enough for her.
David Walker was my break-through to abstract teacher.Sometimes you have to get different perspectives to really get it.

laura west kong said...

Wow! I've got to check her website for a workshop schedule. Maybe I'll be lucky and she'll come to Southern California soon.

I love your flowers so far! The vibrant spiky flowers are a great contrast to the curvy leaves.