tierneycreates

Photoshoot: African Windows

tierneycreates: a fusion of textiles and smiles

A couple weeks ago I did a photoshoot of a quilt I made with African textile inspired fabrics for a project I have been invited to participate in (more details in the future) and I thought I would share a couple images of this quilt, African Windows, I made in 2014.

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Back in 2014, I was gifted a collection of African textiles (not sure if they were originals or reproductions) from someone’s Aunt who had passed who was an avid world traveler and collector of textiles on her travels. (I was also gifted a collection of Japanese and Dutch textiles, which I used to make the quilt I will share in a future blog post).

Here is the Artist Statement I recently wrote on this quilt for the project I was invited to participate:

African Windows (2014)

 I was gifted a collection of African textiles and created a piece to display the beautiful patterns of these spectacular fabrics. The design of this piece was inspired by an old Patchwork Studio pattern called “Aussie”. I adapted this pattern to work with the African textiles.

The quilt measures 56 inches wide by 64.5 inches long.

Here are a couple close up photos of the fabrics used in this quilt:

IMG_20200516_104134IMG_20200516_104136IMG_20200516_104137IMG_20200516_104140

Recently my partner and I remodeled our garage and painted it white. We discovered that an empty section of wall in the garage is a great place to photograph a quilt. So we set up a shop light on a ladder for better lighting.

2020-05-16_10-41-40_7492020-05-16_10-41-59_884Of course it took a while to figure out the best way to mount the quilt so it did not keep sliding down (we used Command Strips) right before we snapped the photo – ha!

MVIMG_20200516_102929A couple more Command Strips and finally it worked!

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Postscript

Around the same time as a photoshoot, I decided I needed a new journal to write thoughts and plans. I came across this lovely journal which I felt had a very inspiring cover and added it to my life:

2020-05-17_10-06-23_197I think it is a great daily inspiration!

Published by tierneycreates: a fusion of textiles and smiles

Quilter, crafter, obsessive tea drinker and lover of all furry creatures (especially dogs and cats) - join me on my tierneycreates blog as I share stories from "A Crafter's Life".

35 thoughts on “Photoshoot: African Windows”

  3. It’s so bold and gorgeous! I am coming to the States as soon as this lockdown is over to buy some of your stuff please! 🙌 Lol..joking. But seriously, I need you to have an online shop.

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  6. Love the 3-D feel to this quilt! And the fabrics are beautiful. Are some of them really textured or does it just look that way? You and John seem like you work together to make a good creative team! ❤️

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  11. Lovely to see all those African fabrics showcased in your beautiful quilt.
    A photographic studio in the garage — what a very clever idea. I think you should patent it. The Woodworker (aka my husband) kindly hammered a nail high up on a white wall on our patio, which I use for photo shoots, which have to be done in the early morning or late afternoon because there is no special lighting (!!). I recently discovered that the stone wall of the older part of our house gives a more rustic background — so I have two open air photo studios (ha!). Seeing as I am writing and essay, can I pass on a hanging tip. The Woodworker kindly makes flat wooden lathes to the size of my quilts, so I can suspend the quilt from wire attached to the screw eyes at each end of the lathe.

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  12. What a great graphic image this quilt presents as a whole and then looking at each of the fabrics for its details and beauty – this is a quilt that will make the eyes happy and it seems to me also the kind of piece that you could find new beauty in each time. I love it.

    I also enjoyed your garage wall photo studio. In our previous house, when I was doing fabric wall hangings, my husband took a piece of 4 x 8 plywood, we covered it with black fabric, and hung it from a pipe that ran along the ceiling in the basement. Then we used two construction lamps for lighting. Like you I sort of taped the hangings to the fabric. Gosh I hated going into the basement, in this house it was like a cave, but having a setup like this made my photos better. Your post brought back that memory!

    I am happy you are working on your art in these days. I know it will keep your spirits flowing in a good direction. And I get a lot out of seeing your work. Thank you.

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      1. It worked great for years, until I started doing collage and I mostly scanned those. Nowadays I take paintings outside to my porch where there is good indirect light. Ah, the ingenious solutions we come up with!

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  18. I love how the black fabric creates a shadow affect. How do you plan to keep your garage clean? My son is using ours for a gym, but there is so much dust and dirt that piles up. Our garage is below ground on 3 sides which may have something to do with it, so the two outer walls are poured concrete. Maybe there is a way to apply some kind of sheet rock. You have gotten me to ponder.
    The one line on your journal that really speaks to me is ‘trust your gut’. I always believed that this is a form of conscience. It has never let me astray (once I recognized what it was!!)

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    1. Thank you and the garage was recently remodeled and that is why it is clean – ha! I bet in a month or so it will not look like that! My partner did dry wall finishing to the garage walls and then painted them white. I agree with following one’s gut! Glad yours has not led you astray!

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  20. More beautiful quilts!!! I would never hang my quilts in my garage with all the spiders and dirt. we have farm fields surrounding our house and I can’t keep the dirt out. Your quilt looks amazing in the natural light.

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