Things are getting more and more eccentric at Casa de la Swain. Changing styles in my textile work, falling in love again with painting and photography...and then there is the ever illusive quest for continuing creativity through working with Eric Maisel. Still on the road teaching, posting now at the Ragged Cloth Cafe and taking the pledge to keep handmaiden up to date.

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Around the House

Working to stay ahead of my students from the Creative Spark class is stretching me as well. Thanks to one of my design students from Phoenix, I was reminded of the original concept behind my leaf work...take the ordinary and make it extraordinary. This particular student from Phoenix brought a claw hammer as her design element. She had helped build her own studio and this design was to honor her efforts. Keeping that in mind, I have had my creativity students working with common household items...still life designs from only things that are currently in their homes....and then the light bulb went on! This is exactly what I was trying to accomplish with the leaves and the direction I want to continue to work.




With that in mind I got out the camera and took some photos from around my house. While one of these is probably not common to every one's home (a globe with boomerang), these are still fairly common items. Plus this set up has great lines and color to work with.

My idea at the moment is to use items from every room as a series of quilts. The kitchen and bathroom will be fun. Other rooms provide more of a challenge. How are you working? Do you appreciate the daily, commonplace items in your home? Or are you so accustomed to seeing them that they have lost their potential as art?

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1 comment:

Anne said...

Welcome, back--I missed you! What a perfect way to galvanize our creative processes . . . use of the ordinary/underfoot items. I am enthusiastic about the concept enough to get out the digital camera and check out weird stuff I've gotten used to at Chez Peck. Thanks for the boot in the brain!
Anne