Where Do You Find Inspiration?

I often look at objects I find appealing and wonder how I could translate the essence of that piece into a quilt. Since visiting Acoma Sky City in New Mexico in 1992, I’ve loved the pottery of the region. When I visited it was on one of the rare days when cameras were allowed on the mesa if you purchased a permit. I had some fabulous photographs of this community that is perhaps the oldest continually inhabited city in North America. Sadly, all of those photos were lost in a flood many years ago.

These black and white images byAnsel Adams taken in the late 1930s and early 1940s don’t do justice to the astounding contrast of china blue sky, creamy adobe structures, and the smiling faces of local women making and selling fry-bread.

I appreciate both vintage works and some that are more modern.

The modern piece at left by Theresa Garcia-Salvador is a favorite of mine.  The artist is just a bit younger than me and is a member of the Red Corn Clan from the Acoma Pueblo in New Mexico. The paints she uses are all natural pigments from the earth. You can see pottery by many Acoma artists here.

 Of course there are other pots I admire, and which may inspire future projects, but when I saw some of the new Kaufman Kona Solids in warm earth tones along with stark black and white at a Whipstitch, a favorite local shop, I knew I had to make something that evoked these beautiful pots.

I’m still working on the design for this wall hanging, but the drawing gives you an idea of where I’m headed. I suspect the final project will include less solid black and more thread painted lines. The finished piece will be roughly 28 x 32 inches, which is fairly small and manageable on a standard home sewing machine. The real challenge will be figuring out which sections to piece and which to appliqué, but what fun it will be – mixed with a bit of hair pulling I’m sure.

Tell me. What inspires your art?