In the past few days I have lowered the "oh for cripes sake" quota for my rant. Because, I realize the book is titled "NANCY CROW" for a reason. There are a bazillion quilt pictures in this book. All of them look pretty much the same. Same colors, same techniques and same patterns. And each and every photo has the same little identity paragraph. "100% cotton fabrics hand-dyed by Nancy Crow. Fabrics cut into directly and machine pieced by Nancy Crow. Hand quilted by___varies_____ with pattern denoted by Nancy Crow." Sometimes the direct cutting into the fabric is done 'improvisationally".
I've checked with my Quilt National books and Visions and no other artist mentions their own name as often as Nancy does.
And, I don't know about any of you but everytime I cut into fabric---I do it directly. And as to the improvisational aspect--- I rarely have any idea how things are going to turn out. And then I have to improvise. Don't we all?
Dare I even approach the hand quilting by another person? Doesn't this make it a "group quilt"? The quilting pattern that Nancy denotes on a scrap of journal page----well, it really needs the hand of a true quilting genius. And the quilting really makes these quilts sing. And Nancy didn't quilt them.
Anyway, Nancy is "really sad" about the rest of us. We are not "raising the bar" and trying for our "best of the best" work like she is. And we are fusing with soluble glue.
I don't fuse with WU but I don't criticize anyone who does. I personally glue improvisationally with Crayola School Glue after cutting directly into my fabric. Nancy would really be SUPER SAD about ME! Just like I'm super sad I bought this book.
5 comments:
Hello, Mom,
I am not SUPER SAD with the things that you create... so what if you use glue, or WU, or pins, or staples, or double-sided tape, or anything else of a connective property. What it looks like... now that's the main thing. I personally don't care how anything is put together as long as it looks wonderful and is put together well enough to be thoroughly enjoyed. So, that being said... Create on and don't mind the crows!
I haven't seen the book, and am not really familiar with her work, so I can't comment on her specifically. But I did order it from the library so I will soon.
This reminds me of QNN and the shows with Mimi Shimp. Her name is mentioned three times in the opening, and she brings it up from time to time in the middle of the show, and it is there twice at the end. I guess she wants to make sure we know who she is.
I have seen people who have made quilts like the one shown on the cover. They look like fabric "sticks". There is another person who also does this, "improvisionally" puts "sticks" and puts it in different places on each of her quilt. It doesn't bother me that so many of her quilts look so similar to me, but it does bother me when I read how she rants on and on about she is a fabric "artist" and looks down on the rest of us lowly people who make quilts using patterns. Her quilts are so similar, she can't even come up with names for them. They are all named Structures with a number behind them to distinguish them from each other.
To each her own, I guess.
You crack me up! I suppose I'm not the first person to notice that you don't mince words. Good for you. I haven't read the book and have not studied Crow's work, so I'll refrain from commenting, but I will say that for me personally, a big part of the art is about enjoying making it. Sometimes work and sweat and agony feel good, but sometimes I just want to play.
I totally see whre you are coming from, but I can also see where Nancy Crow is coming from. It is a book about her work, and I would call the work "well documented." What I think it all comes down to though, is something a classmate of mine said recently, which is to NOT compare our insides with others' outsides. If what Nancy does for herself works for her then GREAT, and likewise, what works for you is great for you, and of course, if what I'm doing makes me happy, then I'm on the right track. BTW, glue or no glue, your marigold is wonderfully vibrant :-)
I have a piece that I made after seeing the Gees Bend quilts and Nancy Crows work for the first time in a slide show a teacher put on for us.
I had to title it "NOT GEES CROW NOR NANCYS BEND" so I wouldnt get sued. (smirk)
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