textile paintings
Virginia Greaves
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Home page: http://www.virginiagreaves.com
Posts by Virginia Greaves
Tweek!
011 years ago
Another week down and not a lot going on to share in this week’s Tweek of Twitter updates. I read a ton of articles but not a lot worth sharing. A few gems in the mix though.
As always, you can follow my live Twitter updates @vsgreaves or click the Twitter icon in the right hand corner just above the menu.
It’s hard to ignore the signs of burn-out going on in Western culture right now. Maybe shortening our work week would have a positive effect:
“Should We All Have A 4-Day Work Week?” … In a perfect world … http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/The99Percent/~3/PkNyhxcYmJo/should-we-all-have-a-4-day-work-week
This article is about working in a series & why it’s important for artists to develop creative thought in more than one piece:
““It Doesn’t Matter if You Call It Art If You Don’t Have Anything to Say” – Creating Art in a Series” http://theabundantartist.com/is-it-art-working-in-series/
Seinfeld was a heavy iconic figure in the 80’s, and as only someone that can write a show about nothing, he is spot on about creative blocks and overcoming them:
“Seinfeld: Writer’s Block Is a B.S. Excuse for Not Doing Your Work.” http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/The99Percent/~3/4ymzcmE8cPE/seinfeld-writers-block-is-a-b-s-excuse-for-not-doing-your-work
Everyone likes to say that creativity is the new highly valued resource in corporate America today — and something we should be cultivating in our children — but the truth just doesn’t back this up. Corporate America looks for skills — not thinkers — and we constantly cut funding to the arts for children. And sadly, creativity is more a point of discrimination than a valued skill:
“Creativity is rejected: Teachers and bosses don’t value out-of-the-box thinking.” http://feedly.com/k/1iGm9iP
I can’t say this enough — if you aren’t failing, you aren’t trying hard enough. You have to fail — usually a lot — before you can ever win a race.
Fail Fast, Fail Often: How Losing Can Help You Win. http://tinyurl.com/nkasjgx
Beyond the sense of appreciation I felt at having Edward Winkleman mention an art exhibit in my hometown of Birmingham, AL — he writes a compelling post about the perception of success that artists need to emulate to become recognized in the art world (and how in reality, even the successful ones are working a day job to keep their art life alive):
“Looking Past the Smoke and Mirrors: “Living and Sustaining a Creative Life”” http://www.edwardwinkleman.com/2014/01/looking-past-smoke-and-mirrors-living.html
Applique Beginnings
111 years ago
Once break was over and the girls returned to school on Tuesday morning, I hit the studio and I’ve been working like crazy ever since.
I finished fusing the baby’s blanket — the last fusing section — and then I moved into fusing the larger pieces onto the muslin to begin appliquéing.
I did have a moment when I was working on the mom that I thought I should have kept her in smaller pieces — her face, her hair, her lower body, her jacket — but I fused whole people together and I was just going to have to live with everything trying to fall off as I started the appliqué process.
I laid my value study on the floor and covered it with muslin, cutting it to fit.
Using the drawing behind as a guide, I laid down the mother and fused her right down onto the muslin on the floor.
I started with her arm but quickly moved into whatever fabric didn’t want to hold onto the fusible the most. I can iron as I go — but squinching (new word?) the fabric under the harp of the machine can wreak havoc on your relationship with your fusible. Bottom line — fusible is a temporary relationship. Everything has to be sewn down.
I do use Wonder Under — and they’ve obviously recently changed the formula. Everyone raves about Misty Fuse — I’m not sure I could get used to something I can’t easily buy and that isn’t already paper backed — but one day I may give it a try. My feelings about Wonder Under vary with the complexity of the project.
Also — I made a command decision on this piece. After having gone to IQF/Houston & realized that I’m one of the few remaining artists that feels the need to cover raw edges — I’ve changed my strategy. A little, anyway. I couldn’t bring myself to get rid of it altogether. As I said, given the size & complexity of my appliqué shapes — if I fused the entire thing down & started to free motion quilt — I would have chaos on my hands. I did, however, compromise with a free motion zigzag. This is my first time with this stitch but given that I free motion quilt with the feed dogs up — it wasn’t much different — it gave me a little more control. And it’s faster — which is the biggest thing.
This is the woman after I finished appliquéing her this morning — from the back.
Once she was done, I fused her son to her left. He is also a complete fused piece. I started appliquéing him this morning — and will probably finish him in my next studio time (since it’s Friday, there’s no telling when that will be.)
2014 Goals
111 years ago
by Virginia Greaves
in Goals
The girls finally went back to school today & I’ve pulled together my goals for the year. I reserve the right to alter these as the year progresses — but hopefully I can get close to my goals.
Lincoln
– Make 2014 goals.
– Refine spreadsheet to monitor goals and progress (create one for 2014).
– Print blog books: 2009, 2010, 2011. One day I’ll catch up. I have all books through 2012 ready to print — it’s really just a matter of sending them to the printer.
– Change all icon references to eye on business card. Years ago, I made a small card with the blue eye of a pic I took — which I then used as my online icon — but last year I made business cards with a different eye. I need to change all of the online references.
– Update personal FB Page with new banner from business page.
– Increase web traffic 5%. Experience has shown me that this is a really hard stat to move. The biggest jump I’ve had in the site was from having my blog listed in the top 55 blogs by Quilter’s Home Magazine in 2011. Last year, I had work in two books and a magazine and traffic only increased just under 6%.
– Complete at least 6 large pieces.
– Participate in Journal52 with at least 40 journal entries. I have several journals lying around the studio but I’ve never participated in a regular one with a group so I thought I’d try it. My work is very different from the paper collage artists though — I may just show my pages on the Facebook Page or in blog posts.
– Enter at least 6 exhibitions. This is really a function of funding. I would love to enter everything under the sun but I can’t.
– Learn how to use the camera lucida. I bought one of these in a Kickstarter campaign and gave it to myself for Christmas. I haven’t had time to play with it yet though.
– Apply for SAQA Professional membership.
– Publish at least 2 blog posts per week. This is a big one for me. I think I may start another weekly concept post — maybe Wordless Wednesday. I think it would motivate me to work on my photography skills.
– Write at least 4 FaceBook posts per week (professional Page). Last year my goal was 3 per week — much easier than I thought it would be.
– Write at least 6 Twitter posts per week. My Twitter persona is about passing along information to other Creatives. In my reading, I find a lot of articles and encouragements that I think are helpful to others.
– Spend at least 15 hours per week in the studio. I thought about making this 20 — but the truth is that life gets in the way. Some weeks I can make 20 easy — some weeks I won’t come close to 15.
– Sell at least 2 of my pieces. I really debated whether or not to put this one on here — but I consider last year very successful in terms of making marketable work. I sold 3 of the 6 pieces I made — and I think that 2 of them will also be sold but just haven’t been exhibited enough yet. Time will tell. Concentrating on making work that I know is marketable subject matter is something I plan to continue.
I don’t have a goal to win anything or be published but I accept any of those opportunities fate throws my way. Maybe I should consider those more aspirations than goals. I also accept speaking engagements & lead workshops if they aren’t too far from home.
Here’s to a prosperous year! Let’s go forth with hope in our hearts and the wind of determination beneath our wings!
Tweek!
011 years ago
by Virginia Greaves
in Twitter
Another busy holiday week full of family and no studio time. Tomorrow we have one last day of vacation and then hopefully I can go back to the family portrait I’ve been working on.
Not a lot to share this week – just a few articles from the few moments I was able to read.
This article is a nice summation of what Banksy brings to the art scene. Love him or hate him, the man knows how to create discussion around art:
“The Vilification of Banksy’s Success” http://hyperallergic.com/99929/the-vilification-of-banksys-success/
No matter what goes on in life, the only constant in life is ART!
“The Only Constant in Life …” http://hyperallergic.com/100979/the-only-constant-in-life/
Another engaging discussion from Edward Winkleman regarding what it takes to be considered a legitimate COLLECTOR of art and why you would want to do that:
“To Earn That Uppercase “C”” … ensuring that the best art of our generation is preserved for posterity. http://feedly.com/k/19UPXC7
OK — this one has no good reason to be here other than it’s entertaining. Given the wretched cold conditions attacking North America, Canada is currently on the same level as Mars in terms of weather. How does that interact with boiling water in a SuperSoaker?
Watch what happens when you use a SuperSoaker on a -42°F day http://zite.to/1cxfDBz
2013 Accomplishments
011 years ago
Last year, for the first time, I made a list of my accomplishments in 2012 — followed by a later posting of goals for 2013. I kept better track of my time than I had before — and both used my goals and, for some items, ignored them when they didn’t suit me. (I’m allowed.)
2013 was a big year for me — I sold three of the six pieces that I made — and I finally broke into the sunshine at the International Quilt Festival/Houston by winning a blue ribbon in my category. I made a lot of new friends — and lost one just before Christmas to breast cancer.
It was a year of highs and lows — but I’m still here — I’m still kicking — still creating — and I hope to share a lot more in 2014.
The Bowl Judgments
– Made spreadsheet of goals with a timesheet.
– Printed two years of blog posts into books (1997 & 1998).
– Developed seminar on choosing fabrics creatively (delivered to my Fiber Art Fusion group in February).
– Accepted into Sacred Threads in Herndon, VA (The Bowl Judgments, Beach Guardians).
– Published in book Sacred Threads Exhibition 2013 (The Bowl Judgments, Beach Guardians).
– Piece published in Machine Quilting Unlimited article about Sacred Threads (Beach Guardians).
– Piece published in Martha Sielman’s book Art Quilt Portfolio: People & Portraits (Celtic Woman).
– Juried into invitational Sacred Threads-Omaha in Omaha, NE (The Bowl Judgments, Beach Guardians).
– Accepted into International Quilt Festival special exhibit It’s Raining Cats & Dogs (Firecracker).
– Accepted into Internal Quilt Festival/Houston World of Beauty (Lincoln, The White Raven).
– Won first place at IQF/Houston in the People, Portraits, & Figures category (Lincoln).
Firecracker
– Accepted into the La Conner International Quilt & Fiber Arts Show in La Conner, WA (Amelia Earhart).
– Won 1st place at the La Conner Quilt & Fiber Arts Show (Amelia Earhart).
– Sold The Bowl Judgments to a private collector.
– Sold Firecracker to a private collector.
– Sold The White Raven to the International Quilt Festival collection.
– Created 5 portraits and 1 abstract. Original goal 6 portraits. Currently halfway through a family portrait.
– Entered Art Quilts XIX (was not accepted).
– Exhibited at East Cobb Quilt Guild Show (Beach Guardians).
The White Raven
– Won 2nd Place in the Original Design category at the East Cobb Quilt Guild Show (Beach Guardians).
– Accepted into Georgia Artists show at the Abernathy Arts Center (Lincoln).
– Participated in SEFAA’s Fiber ARTlanta show (Bukonyan Elder).
– Accepted as an artist at ArtsyShark.com and was featured on their website July 1st.
– Increased Facebook fans from 23 to 77 (goal was 46).
– Designed new labels to use on the Mac.
– Designed & printed new business cards.
– Designed thank you cards with Lincoln. These were used to thank all of the IQF/Houston sponsors.
– Updated FaceBook banner with new work.
– Updated the menus on my website by moving older work to the back and grouping portrait and abstract work into new galleries.
Jacks Are Wild
– Started tweeting articles of interest to fellow Creatives.
– Started a weekly blog post of my tweets called Tweek!
– Tweeted 183 times during the year (although 46 of them were made during my time in Houston).
– Made 254 posts on my FaceBook page and met my goal of posting 3 times per week 85% of the time.
– Made 42 blog posts on my website and met my goal of posting at least 1 blog post per week 65% of the time.
– Spent 455 hours in my studio, 55 hours on my website, and 53 hours doing other administrative things related to my work (like entering shows, shipping, shopping).
– Updated my website for each of my new pieces.
– Added Buy Now buttons (with links to PayPal) to all of the pages of pieces for sale.
– Updated my artist resume.
– Maintained a regular log to account for my time in the studio, on my website, & other administrative tasks related to my art.
It’s All Relative
– Reached my pre-pregnancy goal weight (took me 17 years but I got there!)
– Continued to take hundreds of sports pictures and share them through DropBox.
– Curated the Fiber Art Fusion exhibit It’s All In The Cards with Rebecca Reasons-Edwards which showed at both The Art Place in Marietta and the SEFAA Center in Atlanta.
– Grappled with my hosting service to move the website from a legacy server to the grid. (I should get a medal for this one. GoDaddy just let my site crash and never notified me that I needed to move to newer technology. I now plan to call them annually to discuss the health of the server on which my site resides.)
– Played role of year round lacrosse and choir mom.
– As of 12/27/13, there were 13,483 views on my website, an increase of just under 6% from the previous year.
– I started my Twitter account with no followers and currently have 21 (small — but it’s growing every day!)
Golden Moment
– From August through December, donated over 100 hours in a start-up company.
And then there were some things on my list that I just didn’t do. I saw them there — and I either didn’t enjoy what I had started — or I didn’t feel motivated to do it at all.
– Complete draft of book on textile portraits. I may still do this — it’s just not at the forefront of my mind right now. I’ve also been asked to teach classes. The truth of the matter is that these are big projects — and doing them would take away from studio time.
– Create email/snail mail list. I see this in practically every article I read about art marketing. Maybe I’m lazy but I struggle with keeping up with the blog and Twitter. I don’t have an interest in making a newsletter right now.
– Participate in SEFAA Square Foot Fiber Art Pin Up Show & the Abernathy Art Center Pin Up Show. These are shows that ask for 12″ or smaller pieces — which is not what I typically do. It’s hard for me to pry myself from one of my larger projects to work on smaller ones. I tend to work on one project at a time and don’t start the next one until I’m finished with the one I’m working on.
– Visit at least 12 galleries in Roswell & write a blog review (only did this in January and February). This sounded like a great idea at the time. It was my desire to spread my wings and prepare material for my blog other than my own studio work — but the truth of the matter is that I work in a vacuum. Leaving the house changes the creative dynamic for me, and when I get wrapped up in a project, I like to concentrate on it to the exclusion of other things. I did find a different outlet by sharing articles about art on my Twitter account and then summarizing them each week on the blog in a Tweek!
– Make 2 small pieces a month & list small pieces for sale at ArtFire.com or ArtfulHome.com. This was (and is) a great idea — but as I’ve said, I tend to work on a larger scale. There is something to be said for creating smaller pieces — they are infinitely more marketable and more likely to sell (particularly in the current economy). However, to be smaller, they also need to be simpler — most of the pieces that I find engaging and develop into fuller projects are complex — and I find that more interesting.
I did spend the year with a focus on marketable pieces. I stopped working on people (with the exception of The Bowl Judgments — although you could argue that the angel falls into a category of her own). Many people will see a portrait of a person and say something like “one day I’d like you to do a piece of my grand-children” — but moving that into an actual sale is extremely difficult. Animals have much broader appeal as subjects than people. Anyone that has had a bull-dog will see artwork of a bull-dog and want it.
And although I sold three pieces — which I think confirms my theory about the marketability of certain subject matter — I have to acknowledge that the blue ribbon of Lincoln tells me that there is still room to work on portraits of people — as long as the subject is carefully chosen.
I won’t say that my end goal is to sell all of my work — I think I make my work for me — but it is nice to have a way to cover your expenses and have something left over to contribute to your family.
Good-bye 2013 — it’s been a hell of ride!
Tweek!
011 years ago
by Virginia Greaves
in Twitter
Although the week of Christmas did not result in any studio time, I was able to extract some time to read. I found several hot topics that I found interesting and wanted to share.
As always, if you’d like to follow my live Twitter feed, I’m at @vsgreaves — or click the Twitter icon in the upper right hand corner above the menu.
Is anyone making a substantial living with their art? I once took a watercolor class from Wayne Spradley, one of the few artists I’ve ever personally met that made a living wage with their work. He has work in the collections of most of the living US presidents. But there are a few that make a substantial amount more than the rest of us:
List of Wealthiest Living Artists in the World 2013 – Artpromotivate http://buff.ly/1jAxnWy via @ArtProMotivate
Luke Haynes is a young male quilter that I met online through a mutual friend. It was a big deal when news of his New York exhibit had a review in the New York Times. I’m thrilled for him and the textile community to have some recognition:
#lukehaynes in the NYT! Memories, Stitched Together, for Gallery Walls http://nyti.ms/K7E2XY
And in case he wasn’t already basking in the glow of publicity, Luke also had an article published about him in LA Weekly:
#lukehaynes in LA weekly! How to Be an Avant-Garde Professional Quilter http://blogs.laweekly.com/arts/2013/12/quilter_quilting_sewing.php
I was newly introduced to Edward Winkleman’s blog. He’s an engaging writer and his article about having the freedom to fail as a necessary component of creativity doesn’t disappoint. “Failure is simply part of the process.”
“The Need for Affordable Failure” http://www.edwardwinkleman.com/2013/12/the-need-for-affordable-failure.html
“… success is momentary.” “You are not experiencing failure … You are experiencing life.” Another refreshing perspective on winning and losing in the art world:
It is what it is. The majority of artists — no matter where they are at financially within the art world — will… http://fb.me/6BbhpaQ3s via @BrianSherwinArt
This one was just too funny to not include. Especially working in textiles, I have heard some outrageous comments (the worst probably being a reference to one of my pieces being a placemat — thankfully it sold for a pretty penny so I didn’t spend much time invested in that negativity). It’s always hard to know what to say in return.
18 Things That Artists Hate to Hear – Artpromotivate http://buff.ly/1fWxWoD via @ArtProMotivate
I continue to have a fascination with Banksy and this article of his quotes and pics of his work was interesting. Is his work vandalism or art? “You can win the rat race but you’re still a rat.”
Banksy Street Artist – Amazing Graffiti Art and Quotes – Artpromotivate http://buff.ly/18LJpYn via @ArtProMotivate
Tweek!
011 years ago
It’s time for my weekly Tweek! You can follow me directly on Twitter @vsgreaves — or use the Twitter icon above right above the menu.
I don’t tell you what I’m eating — or what I’m doing (unless it’s really exciting) — I mainly post about what’s going on in the art world and what I think other Creatives would find interesting.
Groundbreaking — the US congressional copyright office is reconsidering “droit de suite” which would give artists a cut on re-sales of their work:
Copyright Office Calls for Congress to Reconsider Royalties for Artists http://nyti.ms/1di4rem
As an artist, it’s time to review your year — and prepare for the next:
Your Year-End Review for 2013 http://feedly.com/e/bKMFLqF0 via @artbizblog
“No-one goes to bed at night and dreams of quality” — better to sell dreams:
Sell the Dream: Customers Want the Dream More Than the Product http://feedly.com/e/tGVizwHQ via @feedly
Expensive cities are killing creativity http://aje.me/1gDy7Ii via @AJEnglish
“What Big Tech Knows About Art and You Don’t” http://theabundantartist.com/big-tech-money-art-sales/
“Tina Seelig: The 6 Characteristics of Truly Creative People”-Truly creative people “are quilt makers” ❤️ http://feedly.com/k/1khJup6
This is about Russian photographer Leonid Tishkov who bought a light up moon and traveled the world with it taking the most fascinating pictures along the way:
“The Man Who Ran Away With the Moon” http://hyperallergic.com/99262/the-man-who-ran-away-with-the-moon/
“You Were Born to Sell: Dismantling the Myths of Self-Promotion” – selling & serving http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/The99Percent/~3/lA1BCX-Dnls/you-were-born-to-sell-dismantling-the-myths-of-self-promotion
“The Year of Rain and Cronuts” – the difference between art museums and amusement parks http://hyperallergic.com/99139/the-year-of-rain-and-cronuts/
Why is everyone surprised that Warhol or Farrah gave Ryan a painting of Farrah? And I find it confusing that the university that was bequeathed Farrah’s collection assumed that this particular piece should have been included. I suppose we are talking about a Warhol:
Ryan O’Neal allowed to keep Warhol portrait of Farrah Fawcett http://reut.rs/19gbzuU via @reuters
Stress and Family
211 years ago
When I started working on this project, I needed a name for this project’s folder on my computer. In the beginning, it was Depression — since it’s based on a Depression era picture. As I worked on the mother, I began to see it has a reflection of the stress of mothers — so I changed the name of the folder to Stress Project — knowing that that wouldn’t be it’s final name. And as I get closer to Christmas and I see the insanity that is family that comes out during the holidays — this has becomes a difficult project for me to work on — much less talk about.
But — I should share my progress from last week. I had finished the mother and her son & began work on the daughter that is on the mother’s other side. This shows her neck, arm, and fingers curled up.
And her hair. I think it turned out well.
I snuggled her up to her mom. You may noticed that I’ve added some darker tones to the son’s hair. I also changed the fabric just under the mom’s hand — they were previously shirt fabrics but they were too close in tone to her skin so I just changed them to coat fabrics so you could see the back of her hand clearer.
The right hand side of the daughter is an extension that I’m creating because the photograph has something obscuring the view here (I think it’s a pole). I decided to lighten the lower shadow.
I like it better here. I also did the babies face. I don’t like how her face comes together but have decided that I’ll work on it after I’ve made her blanket. I’ll probably have the blanket wrap over the top of her head.
The blanket will extend across the bottom of the piece.
I think that I’ll continue as much as I can in the studio to try to black out the insanity of the holidays. It gives me a peace that’s hard to explain.
Tweek!
011 years ago
This is my weekly Twitter update. It’s been a rough week but I had a lot of time for reading.
If you want to follow my Twitter posts directly, I’m @vsgreaves — or click the Twitter icon in the upper right just above the menu.
This is a very fun video to watch. Brene’ Brown is hugely entertaining — and she gets creatives & what we have to do to produce our work. It’s 22 minutes long, but it’s worth the investment of your time:
Brene’ Brown does an amazing speech on “the sweaty creatives”: 22 minutes that all creatives should invest in: http://tinyurl.com/mwbx8qy
Don’t we all need guidance about how to price our artwork correctly:
A Guide to Pricing Your Artwork – http://buff.ly/19adxuE via @ArtsyShark
I have both an undergraduate & graduate degree in business and I’ve always wondered what you do if you’re starting with nothing. This article tries to answer that:
“The Secret of the Chicken and the Egg” : what to do if you’re starting with nothing http://feedly.com/k/IBfeHv
This is an video interview with a brilliant mathematician about how he approaches impossibility (he died a few days after the interview):
“How to Tackle Impossible Problems” interview with the creator of fractals Benoit Mandlebrot http://feedly.com/k/1ceBKgr
To find that our support of the arts in the US is dwarfed by our support of football is unsettling at best:
“Where’s the Money? US Arts and Culture Economy By the Numbers” does our culture in the US support the arts? http://hyperallergic.com/97423/wheres-the-money-us-arts-and-culture-economy-by-the-numbers/
Let’s face it — as artists, we are our own worst critics — and it’s good to hear that we’re in good company:
“Bruce Springsteen, Woody Allen, and the Long Tradition of Hating Your Own Work” http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/The99Percent/~3/uU23FDGkqcg/bruce-springsteen-woody-allen-and-the-long-tradition-of-hating-your-own-work
This is not art related at all but I found it fascinating because it explained a hole in history that I rarely see discussed — the decisions of the British & French & how they shaped the current state of the Middle East:
How the Middle East was shaped after the Ottoman Empire “The map that caused a century of trouble” http://zite.to/1dyunCQ
This is a photography article but its discussion of using the Golden Mean for composition is applicable to all visual art:
“Beyond Basic Composition: Line, Shape and Form in Photography” http://zite.to/191Of4a
Again, not an art article but a scientist interview about how having widespread technology without widespread understanding of how it works will lead to a controlled society:
“A Science Icon Died 17 Years Ago. In His Last Interview, He Made A Warning That Gives Me Goosebumps.” http://zite.to/19Hnnk7
“British Library uploads one million public domain images to the net for remix and reuse” http://zite.to/1kGOVLU