Friday, May 19, 2017

Art With Fabric Blog Hop: Spring 2017 Celebrating "WOMEN"


THIRD edition of Art With Fabric Blog Hop: Spring 2017
Celebrating "WOMEN"
Image result for grace martin taylor artist
photo from wvgazettemail.com

Being a West Virginian through and true, I wished to share some West Virginia Artist Love. Grace Martin Taylor was born in Morgantown, WV in 1903 and graduated from WVU in 1928. She was a printmaker, artist, collage artist, painter and educator and became one of America’s most innovative printmakers of the second quarter of the 20th century. She was most known for her woodblock prints.
Since her death in 1995, Taylor’s art has been exhibited throughout the United States, at widely known places such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the National Academy of Design, the Smithsonian Institution, the Baltimore Museum of Art, Corcoran Gallery of Art, the Brooklyn Museum, Virginia Museum of Fine Art, the National Museum of Women in the Arts, ACME Fine Art in Boston and the British Museum. Just recently her daughter donated 27 of her prints for permanent display to West Virginia University's Art Museum. She is still highly regarded as one of the most influential 20th century artists from West Virginia.


         “Lucie at Piano” by Grace Martin Taylor, 1938, linoleum block print on paper. Isn't it just adorable?!
                                                             wvutoday.wvu.edu

"Studio Window", one of her woodblock prints, was inspired by her view from her Morgantown, WV studio. See more Charleston Gazette  and The Art Store WVor visit the Art Museum of West Virginia University which is located  near the corner of Patteson Drive and Morrill Way at the Evansdale Campus of West Virginia University - if you happen to be driving through Morgantown, WV that is.

                                   And one of her lovely still lifes. You can get the down load here.

As an alumni of WVU and a West Virginia resident, I wanted to represent an artist close to home! I will be choosing one of Grace's much celebrated prints as inspiration to create my own "Studio View" at Morgantown.

Although I did not have a down-town view, my view is still nice; the back yard with my two apple trees and flower gardens. You can only see one of the trees from the window view.

In the construction of the quilt, I chose to use a blank slate much as Grace would use a blank sheet  to transfer her wood block print to. The image was created using applique cut-outs made from fusible cotton fabrics. To fuse the applique pieces to the blank fabric I used Heat-n-bond lite and fabric adhesive.


After arranging each piece and ironing down, the whole cloth was machine quilted with emphasis on tacking each applique piece and creating texture. The machine was set up for free motion quilting (lower the feed dogs and use a darning foot) and using a matching or contrasting thread stitching around the outer edges of the images, adding detail for texture. This is a machine drawing technique that was learned through following some of Janet Clare's work.

Creating murals are wonderful examples that you can use up some scraps from your scrap basket as well! I haven't decided where this beauty is going to go just yet....Maybe onto a zipper bag??? Got any ideas?

Visit all of the other Artists participating in the Spring 2017: Art With Fabric blog hop hosted by Alida at Tweety Loves Quilting.

Monday, May 15th, 2017

Tuesday, May 16th, 2017 

Wednesday, May 17th, 2017 

Thursday, May 18th, 2017 

Friday, May 19th, 2017 





16 comments:

  1. I love block printing, and was excited to read about Grace Martin Taylor. I love your piece too- I think you've captured what makes block printing attractive (to me at least) but interpreted it in a quilt format. I'm not sure if that makes sense, but I really like the bold, graphic statement from your piece.

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  2. This is really cool. I love how you reinterpreted her work.

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  3. Your piece is a lovely interpretation of her work! Thanks for sharing also the artist history and information: it adds depth and interest to the final piece. I think that a zipper bag (or little tote project bag) would be a perfect use for your masterpiece! Thanks for being part of the blog hop and for sharing your talent with all of us!!

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    1. Thank you the inspiration to move beyond the normal~ I enjoyed discovering many new artists along the journey.

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  4. Thanks for selecting a local artist and showcasing her work. Your interpretation is spot on. Great work.

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  5. so thoughtful. I am happy to meet you! I quite love art from the 20's and didn't know about this woman. I enjoyed your inspiration and process... the raw quality feels immediate and emotional. I like leaving the space around the applique pieces so it does resemble woodcuts. I say finish it. Keep your momentum... stay with it, no baggies or simmering. Just make a momentary choice and go with it. It has an energy that is really terrific. Wish we were closer so we could visit each other's studios! I'm in MD by the way, not too too far lol
    LeeAnna at not afraid of color

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    1. Thank you so much for the encouragement! Working in Southern Shores right now ;) MD is quite beautiful.

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  6. Hi Anita, thanks for introducing me to Grace Martin Taylor. Her work is lovely. I really like how you presented her and the way you were inspired to make your own view from your window. Your piece is delightful!

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  7. This turned out fantastic! I had not heard of Grace Martin Taylor, but I love her artwork...thank you for sharing her with us!

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  8. What a great piece! I especially love how you were influenced by a local artist. The result is wonderful!

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    1. Thank you Jennifer, I am quite excited to go visit my sons at college now to view the exhibit!

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