Quilter's Scraps

In the middle of January we had a big snow in Seattle. Well, big for Seattle.

The timing of it for me was unexpectedly really nice.

On the monday of the week of snow I left an installation up on Foster Island, which has trails over it and stretches over a marshy area over Lake Washington.

I had spent a few weeks making strings of bunting with folded fabric - all scraps from years of my mother quilting. I ended leaving the installation up for 8 days. In that span of time the snow built up and collected in little pockets of the fabric. The snow melted and the fabric was soaked. I let it dry then took it down lest someone take it as littering.

I was overjoyed by how God led me in making this artwork and how he interacted and played such an integral role in activating it in the space. God led me to make something with less thinking and stress and more enjoyment.

He let me make something simple and then glorified himself by making it beautiful, all in his timing. The snow tempered the bright fabric and made it a nice warm note in the cold landscape rather than a manmade intrusion. God is the true Creator, the true artist. I am his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that I should walk in them.

these days.

looking at this:

(don't remember who this is/where it's from)

and this:

Maureen Gubia

and this:

(don't remember where it's from either... oops)

and THIS:

Dream City by Paul Klee

and listening to this:

Kids on Holiday by Animal Collective, from the album Sung Tongs

Harmony Drawer

Found this cool drawing tool called Harmony, made these:

Go. Do it. It's cool.

Beautiful Objects.

This is the source of my blog title. From a beautiful film by Michel Gondry (director of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind as well).

scene from "The Science of Sleep"

The Czech Republic and Printmaking

I started Winter Quarter this week and I'm taking a Mono-Printing class. Our first assignment is to just gather inspiration from our incredible Art Library we have right in the Art building at UW, and do some drawings to start forming ideas. I'm also taking a class called "Anthropology of the Post-Soviet States." I guess the combination of the two classes has spurred on the idea of doing a series of prints illustrating The Czech Republic today and the still visible scars of Soviet Control on the country. When I went to Europe last spring I spent 3 days in Prague and trained all the way across the country. I've been haunted by the quiet, still, broken down beauty and antiquity of the Czech Republic over the past week.

I'm quite excited to get to work. So many patterns and a focused colored palette naturally there! And the quiet dreariness of the countryside that I want to try to capture. It should be quite hard though. We'll see if my enthusiasm stays :)

New-ness

This picture is pretty and unrelated to anything. Just something to look at. It is Austria, looking down from a mountain with the largest system of ice caves in the world.

It is 2011. I cooked all day today. Yesterday. Whatever.

I cooked a 7 course fancy fancy meal. Plated every dish on my family heirloom 12-setting Noritake china. 

We had:

vegetable puree soup with creme fraiche and basil,

beet salad with pistachios, basil and a balsamic reduction,

roasted fennel bulb with romesco sauce,

Spanish-style prawns in the shell a tomato-white wine-parsely sauce,

salmon with leeks and red bell peppers wrapped in phyllo dough,

roasted duck with an orange-honey sauce and sauteed swiss chard,

and

mini chocolate bundt cakes with a vanilla cream sauce

So ridiculous and really fun and joyous. We ate for 2 1/2 hours. I am very thankful that God has blessed me with an abundance of gifts that are incredibly tangible and that he chose me to use them to bless my brothers and sisters through these gifts.

Also, would really like to get my works in progress/future plans of making in order and make an etsy page to sell things on soon. For a page name I was thinking "dwell richly" so I looked up "dwell" in my concordance. This passage is stunningly beautiful.

"Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know— this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it. For David says concerning him,

“‘I saw the Lord always before me,

for he is at my right hand that I may not be shaken;

therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced;

my flesh also will dwell in hope.

For you will not abandon my soul to Hades,

or let your Holy One see corruption.

You have made known to me the paths of life;

you will make me full of gladness with your presence.’

Acts 2:22-28

Here's another pretty picture (Schladming, Austria):

(I can't believe I got to live here!)

In this new year may you grow in trust of the Lord and live out of the grace that has been poured onto us.

Virgins playing tambourines.

Psalm 68:19-35 (ESV)

Blessed be the Lord,

who daily bears us up;

God is our salvation. Selah

Our God is a God of salvation,

and to God, the Lord, belong deliverances from death.

But God will strike the heads of his enemies,

the hairy crown of him who walks in his guilty ways.

The Lord said,

“I will bring them back from Bashan,

I will bring them back from the depths of the sea,

that you may strike your feet in their blood,

that the tongues of your dogs may have their portion from the foe.”

Your procession is seen, O God,

the procession of my God, my King, into the sanctuary—

the singers in front, the musicians last,

between them virgins playing tambourines:

“Bless God in the great congregation,

the Lord, O you who are of Israel's fountain!”

There is Benjamin, the least of them, in the lead,

the princes of Judah in their throng,

the princes of Zebulun, the princes of Naphtali.

Summon your power, O God,

the power, O God, by which you have worked for us.

Because of your temple at Jerusalem

kings shall bear gifts to you.

Rebuke the beasts that dwell among the reeds,

the herd of bulls with the calves of the peoples.

Trample underfoot those who lust after tribute;

scatter the peoples who delight in war.

Nobles shall come from Egypt;

Cush shall hasten to stretch out her hands to God.

O kingdoms of the earth, sing to God;

sing praises to the Lord, Selah

to him who rides in the heavens, the ancient heavens;

behold, he sends out his voice, his mighty voice.

Ascribe power to God,

whose majesty is over Israel,

and whose power is in the skies.

Awesome is God from his sanctuary;

the God of Israel—he is the one who gives power and strength to his people.

Blessed be God!

I love the image of virgins playing tambourines. At first, reading it, I giggled. Then I stopped and listened to what it meant, and it was lovely and beautiful. People redeemed by God out of sin, their record wiped clean so that their standing before him could be as virgins. And they are overflowing with joy. God is so good.