Thursday, January 6, 2011

wandering beneath the moon

a dreamer is one who can only find his way 
by moonlight and his punishment is that he 
sees the stars before the rest of the world.
-oscar wilde 



i had to venture out into the dark and leave the brilliant snowy landscapes behind for a piece. mind was chaotic. perhaps identifying too closely with the chaos that abounds in this dream/reality. need to refocus. redefine. expand. empty. center.

in keeping with the wardrobe quilting done for the foundation of this cloth (as a result of jude hill's c2c workshop), i began digging through clothes. came up with a wonderful hand batiked pair of rayon lounge pants (not mine, but in my closet...hope whomever has donated them to my art won't be too mad) and a paisley shirt (this time mine from way back). both began whispering before i found them. add to them some old piece of hand dyed cotton from an old dyeing workshop and quilted whole-cloth brown pillow cover. some judicious free hand cutting and this peaceful cloth began to emerge.

not certain i'm totally at one with the composition. it's too...balanced, i think. perhaps some subtraction is in order.  it seems a shame to cover the foundation cloth so completely, as well... but i'm happy with it being a gentle secret if need be.

step back. contemplate. play with scraps and pins. walk beneath the moon and wait for the stars to appear...

namaste'






p.s. shut the door quietly, lest you disturb the sleeping dragon...

19 comments:

  1. Joe. Very cool -- would look really nice hanging in my Buddha garden with some nice copal wafting around! Namaste.

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  2. mmmm....i like the mental image of that....

    namaste'

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  3. your talent is incredible.I will start to sound like a broken record after awhile, so know I'm always checking on what your writing and working on, I am totally intrigued and entralled. I love the fresh air the new kid on the block has brought. Ha!

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  4. the new kid on the block! good one helen! though he is new here in the world of jude and spirit cloth i am betting he is an old soul. joe you work and your words speak so strongly.... its a comfort in these last weeks of the metal tiger. i am standing back watching too. namaste

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  5. ! helen and nandas...i'm beginning to feel like a member of a boy band. a middle-aged, not nearly so cute member of a boy band...but a member nonetheless!

    meanwhile, not displeased to see the wane of the iron tiger. too militant for my taste. may the iron rabbit bring a calm and diplomacy to us all...

    as to talent and old souls...barry switzer said that some people are born on third base and go through life thinking they hit a triple. i'm more inclined to think that perhaps i was born on third base and have gone through life thinking i'm still standing on home plate. that is, if i'm to even acknowledge that i am not on home plate in the first place.

    i don't know how to explain it. i've done so many things in my life and those around me say that i do them with ease...or rise to their occasions with skill. mostly, i just have these murmurings (or whispers, as jude describes them) of creativity that seek paths from inside to manifest here in more concrete form. they ebb and flow. pour forth from whatever portal they can find.

    the difficulty. the struggle. is to either direct them in a meaningful manner...or to step aside and allow them to unfold on their own. i don't always know which action i have taken. so, more often than not, i, too, am standing back and simply watching. would that we all could look at ourselves through another's eyes...

    gratitude and warmth to you both.

    namaste'

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  6. Joe,

    I have so enjoyed reading your blog. I love the work you do but more than that, I love how you weave your work into the stories and poetry.

    You have given me something new to think about today! In the world of design one always tries to find balance... at least that is what we are taught in school.
    In the lives that we live, we are constantly looking for that inner balance.. Yet, you say your piece is too balanced.. That has left me thinking.. a lot!
    I usually follow my heart while making a quilt. I end up with something that mostly pleases my eyes in the end. I have not been able to articulate my thought process while I design..
    Thanks for giving me a thought to ponder upon.
    I am reading your last paragraph in the comment section and feel as if you are speaking my mind.
    When I am creating, I feel as if my heart is singing and fabric is singing along with it. I am just an instrument that makes it happen!
    In the peace and quiet, the music(creativity) gets louder and I can hear it wanting to free itself..
    Few days later.. a quilt happens! I have watched it happen and along the way It has made me a happier person.. I can see that..

    Thank you!
    namaste'

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  7. yes...covering the weaving beneath.., always
    a decision
    but i love the rich layering as it is...
    enough remains.
    really really beautiful.

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  8. thank you, sujata. yes. we seek balance. but balance can be found in imbalance. the trick is sitting in the moment. when in the moment, all is in balance. of course, before you even realize you are in the moment, the moment has passed. like a wave beneath a little boat. perhaps the true trick is to feel the rhythm of those momentous waves and allow the balance to take care of itself...

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  9. yes. "rich layering". thank you, grace! i love that. i've only subtracted one flower...to throw the buddha cloth out of balance once more, thereby bringing it back into balance.

    namaste'

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  10. joe... as far as "not nearly so cute"... my mother always said, "pretty is as pretty does." and you do.
    off to bed now... namaste

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  11. to throw the cloth out of balance, thereby
    bringing it back into balance
    yes....! this is sometimes IT. will save this
    thought of yours in my minds shoebox. thanks.

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  12. ah, grace, imbalance is more often in balance than not. speaking of mind's shoeboxes...mine are all overstuffed. think it's time to buy another pair of shoes.

    namaste'

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  13. I love to look at other peoples art work, especially fiber arts but it's not often that I think - wow, I would hang that on my wall in a heartbeat. So there you are!
    Balanced, unbalanced, pins and all!
    Ha! (as jude says)
    Cat

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  14. cat. wow! high praise. thank you! on my wall is where it is at the moment. pins replaced by basting stitches. mulling over next move. thinking applique stitch for the buddha. maybe same for the paisley and then kantha the whole cloth.

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  15. Ah, Oscar has some wise things to say today. I just wanted to say that I spent some time studying the base cloth. I usually see something as a whole first and then my eye travels to areas of layer to see what lies beneath. I really love the different cloths you've used as the base here. They add a deep richness and textured look to the overall.

    ;~) Debi

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  16. thank you debi. it's from working with whatever happens to be in my suitcase! wardrobe quilting can be quite enlightening! ha! you can find an unobstructed view of that base cloth in an earlier post.

    namaste'

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  17. Oh my...I think this Buddha is saying, "Whoa, stop and study this intersection, right where it is exactly now." That is just what I need to hear this morning. Thank you Joe.

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  18. ha! the moment has a way of grabbing you and making you look at it, doesn't it!?! just don't spend any time studying it...as soon as it occurs, it is no longer and is replaced by another moment. just be.

    namaste'

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