Tuesday 25 September 2012

Creativity

I have been cogitating recently about creativity; this sometimes elusive feature of my life and on why it seems to appear and disappear seemingly at random.
I have never been able to summon it at will, can sometimes be quite overwhelmed by its sudden appearance and yet be anxious when it seems to have deserted me.
I have had various books recommended to me, all of which either state the blindingly obvious or set about recommending a punishing schedule of personal navel contemplation to to bring creativity back!
BUT ......
It has recently struck me that the analogy I need when trying to understand this phenomenon relates to mining for precious metals! Bare with me...........
Years ago I was engaged in the prospecting phase when I was discovering that I was quite good at making things and could come up with my own ideas rather than follow a pattern. At this stage I knew that creativity existed within my compass somewhere, but not necessarily where!
You need to dig down within yourself until you strike the seam that you have been grasping for - the thrill of discovering this rich vein - leads to the creation of all sorts of work; one is engaged by it; fascinated by the possibilities but like the vein it has a habit of abruptly halting, it disappears. You understand that it must still be there but now have to dig again to find where it has shifted to. Sometimes when you find the vein again it is thin and difficult to mine but intellectually I now understand that by following this thin vein I will eventually reach the main load and will be driven to create again and to enjoy the freedom I've gained.
This is a very affirming analogy and allows me to recognise that it is being open to the possibilities that makes creativity work! Now when creativity goes quiet I no longer panic but keep some aspect of making going until it pops up again!

Sunday 2 September 2012

The Great Northern Quilt Show

This is the first time I have visited this quilt show, a compact site with good facilities but generally the majority of exhibited quilts were very traditional. Beautifully made but not really my major interest.
There were however two stunning quilts from Hilary Beattie which stood out, head and shoulders above all the rest of the entrants.




Beyond these two there were two small, subtle pieces made in response to the Sutton Hoo Challenge



As usual I was seduced by some of the stunning fabrics available and some came home with me!

Celebrating Diversity

Just back from a trip up to the Quilt Museum in York. Really enjoyed this exhibition and the amazing collection of very different pieces.
All of a similar size, each country invited to exhibit two pieces of work that represented the diversity of their country. We were represented by a stunning collection of little squares designed by members of the Contemporary Quilt Group each depicting a different aspect of British life and by Sheena Norquay with a very subtle set of squares each with a variation of a spiral quilting design.
The stand-out pieces were "My own Venice" by Maria Luisa Comand with a canal view of Venice  representing Italy and "Swinging Amsterdam" by Rita Dijkstra of Netherlands. Both very detailed pieces with great depiction of water in both and very detailed pieced buildings.
No pictures as there was photography allowed.