Making do with what one has is a foreign concept to many. Instead we go out and buy the exact things we need. Whether it is the ingredients in a recipe or following instructions on how to make something, we make sure we have what's called for. Improvisation seems to take a confidence we no longer have. I have always loved the Quilts of Gee's Bend because they are wonderful examples of work that uses what is at hand. Today we have quilting stores that sell an incredible assortment of fabric specifically designed for the purpose. However quilting originated as a way of using up scraps. The quilts of Gee's Bend, currently on display at Lehman College, reveal how using left-over scrap fabric to piece together a design, can result in unexpected and very dynamic compositions. 

These quilts are part of what has become known as an Afro-American quilting tradition, which characteristically rely on an intuitive and almost random piecing together of shapes to create an organic geometry. This approach contrasts dramatically to the European-based quilting style done by the early pioneer settlers in which designs were based on precise geometry and following regular and specific patterns. The Afro-American quilts move back and forth from the language of craft to ideas that reflect abstract formalism in 20th and 21st century painting. This shift can be seen when viewing these quilts in the Greg Kucera Gallery in Seattle, a gallery specializing in contemporary art. The quilts read as solid and strong abstract paintings made with fabric instead of paint.

An example of a contemporary college artist influenced by the idea of making do and the tradition of quilting is Lance Letscher (see image below). Letscher uses a range of found recycled materials from books and other printed forms. An excellent monograph on his work, Lance Letscher: Collages, is filled with great images of how these materials get transformed into designs ranging from simple geometric patterns to more complex layering of imagery.

The quilters of Gee's Bend and Lance Letscher are brought together through a desire to use materials at hand and letting those materials influence the structure of their geometric designs. The materials also add meaning to the work in that they have a history, they were someone grandfather's shirt or someone's favourite book; qualities which can never be found in newly purchased fabric or art materials.

Video: The Quilts of Gee's Bend

 
 

 
There are still some spaces left in this delightful workshop taught by Xane St Phillip.

Islamic patterns are intriguing to look at because they are both simple and visually complex. Simple because they are based on only a few geometric shapes such as the circle and triangle, complex because of how these shapes are repeated. This afternoon workshop will include additional Islamic pattern techniques and working with colour in your design. As with Islamic Design 1, the instructor will guide you through a series of step-by-step exercises using a pre-formed grid to develop your own pattern and variations of a design. It is not necessary to have done Islamic Design 1 to take this workshop.

Instructor: Xane St Phillip

Tuition: $65 (all materials included)  

Related images 

 

 To register online

Sunday, Mar 8, 10am-5pm

 

The pinhole camera, or 'camera obscura', predates the invention of photography, and is a basic device which illustrates the fundamentals of photography as well as how the eye works. You will make your own unique pinhole camera to "shoot" negatives on photographic paper and make positive prints in the black and white darkroom. This is a process that involves intuition and experimentation with the material of light.

All supplies are included, except you are requested to bring a box or container to use for a pin-hole camera (shoebox, cookie tin, etc.). Detailed instructions on how to choose a good pinhole box will be sent closer to date of workshop.

 

Instructor: Laura Dutton
Tuition: $135.00 (6 hrs)  All materials included

 Related images

 To register online

Sunday, Mar 8, 1pm-4pm

 

Often used as a pejorative term in art, this workshop takes the word 'decorative' and focuses on its potential as a way to create beautiful and intricate drawings.

 

This workshop is ideal if you want to approach drawing in a playful and inventive way. You will start from simple shapes derived from natural forms and then elaborate on them to create complex and detailed drawings. Traditional pen nib and ink as well as more modern felt-tipped pens will be used.

 

Instructor: Wendy Welch

 

Tuition: $65.00 (3 hrs) All materials included

 

To register online

 

Help our VISA graduates with their London exhibition