L is for Layers

November 13, 2006

layers

for my own reference:

i think layers are the most important element in my work. perhaps that is what has attracted me to the quilt as a medium. or why i hover here. it allows me the opportunity to explore this concept on all levels… functional (a personal requirement), conceptual and technical.

the functional part is a given. i am not interested in creating wall art. i want to spend my time creating something useful above all.  so the element of layering in a quilt is on the simplest level is always present as a functional element for warmth, and then strength, followed by reversibility and of course repair ( most quilters leave this out!).

on a conceptual level layers fit well into the my concept of symbolism and magic.  layers. what we see and don’t see, what we can touch and not touch. the transformation from one to the other.

technical possibilities are expanded limitlessly with the use of multiple layers. way beyond a sewing machine. and so i stay unplugged, sewing through some layers and not others, trying to understand the nature of the fabrics, hiding things and exposing others. playing my game of hide and seek.