Tuesday, April 01, 2008

Friend of Twelve by Twelve : Community

Today is the "reveal". I had an entirely different piece in progress. Couldn't find it. And there is no such thing as "coincidence". This piece wanted to be made. It all fell together in moments, each piece directly under my hand when I wanted "something".

I used bleach discharged black cotton, a vintage map of Washington, D. C., and a magazine clipping of an old hinge. I placed the hinge on the straight edge of the map of the Capital, the largest community common to Americans. To the right (?) : rough waters, and accidentally, some skulls. The choice of black and white is racial and political. Right or wrong. Yes or No. Us or Them. Good or Evil.

In the lowest, left corner, tacked down with clumsy, painful stitches is another community: Arlington Cemetery.

Not all of the community pieces made by the Twelve are joyful. The tree with colorful leaves and the birds on a wire made me smile. The text that accompanies some of the work contains a number of vocabulary words that I hadn't expected to see: couldn't, difficult, separate, disconnected, excluded, not a part of, outside. My first piece was all about loneliness.

6 comments:

Deborah Boschert said...

It really turned out to be quite an insightful surprising theme, didn't it? I guess I'm happy to know that I'm not alone in my feelings about community. Your quilt is amazing. One of the very best, I think.

I feel relieved to be moving on to the new theme: water.

gema said...

Joanne, this piece is truly incredible. I am loving it completely. I keep peering at it close up. Congratulations on this wonderful piece of art....

Terri Stegmiller said...

Your community quilt is wonderful and I couldn't help but giggle about how you had started another and couldn't find it. Great ideas here.

Unknown said...

This is very striking indeed. thanks for playing along.

Karen said...

Joanne,
I really liked both of your pieces, very different and very effective. Can't wait to see what you do with our newest theme.

Nikki said...

Both your community quilts are amazing. With this one you were able to let go of the idealism that I know my heart clings to. It truely speaks to what has become of community on a grand scale in our country. Your other quilt speaks more to community on a more personal level. Thank you so much for playing along. I can't wait to see Water, such a big topic!