changing direction

sitting next to the wood-burning stove, looking out at the falling snow, my thoughts turn inward...changing direction from their usual ilk.  finding myself contemplating the creative life, and the various avenues i have found beneath my feet, it seems that a new blog is called for.

over the past 30 years, i have been a bearmaker, woodturner, sculpter, potter, painter, illustrator, weaver, knit designer, dollmaker, quilt designer, textile dyer, spinner, author, teacher, caretaker, beadworker, builder, philosopher, gatherer, repurposer, observer, and general free-thinker.  the foosteps echoing beneath these feet now ring with a softer thud.

the snow is falling gently in soft, fluffy flakes, blanketing the countryside with a fresh canvas.  like the pastures around my home, my mind (and i use the terms rather loosely) is shaking loose and settling into fresh grooves.  most recently i have been a quilt designer and textile artist.  for years i have honed my craft and sought technical perfection.  points and angles must meet at proper degrees.  colors must harmonize in symphonic melody.  threads must be submissive and lay as they are told...  order must be achieved!

but why?  why must this be so?

why can't threads jump to the fore and make themselves known, not merely as fasteners, but as primary actors in the play of textiles? why can't points stray? why can't seams meander and forge their own paths?  isn't it out of chaos that creativity springs?

studying traditional and contemporary boro textiles has split my imagination wide open and spilled the possibilities all over the worktable in my studio.  designers such as jude hill (of http://spiritcloth.typepad.com/) and ann wood (of http://annwood.net/blog/) have pushed me outside my comfortable box and inspired me to let go of all that i have ever known to be "required" of my art.  they, and others like them, have unwittingly left the thread crumbs that have lead me off the beaten path and deep into the woods of chaotic vision!

this blog will serve as an introduction and record of this new descent into artistic insanity and vision.  i hope you enjoy the journey and find yourself pushing on into your own forest of creative abandon!

namaste'