I am on the precipice of starting a new body of work which is a three year collaboration with another artist. I have been doing my R & D work on this for months and now am ready to get to work. Just as when I decided to do the Tall Girl Series, the idea of designing over two dozen large pieces of work in 2-3 years is a bit overwhelming; and yet at the same time I love those kinds of challenges. In that case I made a business plan and have done much the same here. It helps with the planning and execution of so many ideas. I’ve heard it said as if eating an elephant, one bite at a time.
The last week has been a bit frenzied with giving my retrospective lecture to a group of 150 on Saturday and finalizing choices for the kitchen renovation, meeting with various contractors etc. And yet in there I found a bit of time for elephant appetizers. I began sorting through my bags of scraps and cutting them to sew into strips. It is the mere beginnings of what I visualize will be a running theme throughout my 24-25 pieces for this collaboration.
I don’t save every scrap to cross my blade. I save only to-die-for scraps, batiks and fabrics I have designed. That said I have amassed three large plastic bags full since the last time I gave scraps away, which I do from time to time.
There is something incredibly soothing and relaxing about piecing little tiny bits of fabrics together. It is as meditative as it is productive. I have friends who sew nothing but scrap quilts and they are always beautiful. There really is something to this process.
By the time I finish the pile of scraps and subsequent strip building I will be ready to jump in on piece #1. I can’t think of anything I’d rather do than make art to distract me from the kitchen renovation!