Friday Art Romp in Anacostia

Cappy and Molly Ruppert who make it all happen

Look for the colorfully decorated tree smiling at passers by

Last night was my first show of the new Orange Explains It quilt hung on a gallery wall. It's big and orange with an impact that was as bold as the colors are bright and the response was very enthusiastic. There were dozens of art works on display all different and interesting in their own ways which is always the case at an ART ROMP. Lots of artists from the Warehouse gallery scene on 7th St. NW where Molly Ruppert, with help from her big family, hosted a couple dozen art romp parties over the last 20 years. I was delighted to see so many artist friends and their new work and meet lots of new art admirers. 

The new Anacostia Arts Center is such a great space. Clean white walls, beautiful light hardwood floors without a scratch or a bump, it seems to be brand new but is housed in what appears to be an old dime store front. Located on Good Hope Road in SE right off the 11th St. bridge over the river. I was inspired by the director Kate Taylor Davis to begin thinking about all the things we can do in a new artist center. Figure drawing has been mentioned as something they would like to have there. However there are lots of ideas that come to mind when I think of ways to use empty rooms in such a cool building. What would you do with a big building full of these lovely rooms? 

I must admit I was reluctant to go to Anacostia in SE when I first heard about the show's location but I was harboring old fears and prejudices about Anacostia. Clearly these were unfair and will soon be history. Hope you can find your way there soon and drop in to see the show. 

This Art Romp Exhibition is open through Sept. 15th 2013. 

Anacostia Arts Center 1231 Good Hope Road, SE 

Washington DC 20020 more information here:

www.anacostiaartscenter.org

Orange Explains It, quilt on the wall. 

wider view of the front doors

Long deep corridor with railings around skylights to the floor below where business meets 

Caught the amazing artist Ruth Trevarrow coming through one of the gallery doors

 families are always part of the gallery scene

Glass artist Sean talking to collectors Christina & Nora

 

Molly explaining something to her grand kids 

Keith and Matt discussing the art

Further adventures in quilting by the bay

This past week at the Ruppert's Bay retreat I got some big work completed. The first on my list of "things to do" was the space hungry basting of the three parts in a quilt that has to be spread out flat to accomplish, namely basting the three layers together before they can be quilted. The hand pieced top of 54 Rose-Stars was the quilt top that was ready to do this to and I got right to work. Backing laid out and stretched with painter's tape on a hard wood floor (painted red) layered with batting and finally the color filled top fit just right in the room... with a little room to walk around it on all sides. Last year I used this room to make my first machine pieced quilt. I didn't know last year to tape the bottom layer down while working which this year made the whole process much more accurate and easy. It was still hard labor to crawl on the floor stitching in large basting stitches with a long needle and thimble to push it through the three layers and back up. My figures were sore my knees and eventually my hip from laying on my bony side... But in less than 24 hours it was done folded and set aside to make way for the next project.

Rose-Star quilt basted fully stretched out on the floor of the red house's studio room 

back side of the Rose-Star Quilt is all white printed muslin. Close inspection of the photo shows lots of long dark blue threads running in a star burst from the center.

dark blue pieces for white panels stacked waiting to be appliqued 

 The Dresden Plate quilt a tribute to my great grandmother's of the same design is next. I have 30 blocks with hand stitched central circles appliqued on top of the machine pieced and appliqued plates in blue and white with opposite backgrounds. I also had seven more blocks near complete thinking I might do a small version to experiment with the machine quilting techniques I haven't tried yet with any success.

full sized diamond layout of the Dresden Plate pieces 

Diamond layout for smaller quilt top

The new environment was stimulating and having extra room to spread out and only these two projects on my plate made a new idea pop up. Diamonds? What if I turned the blocks to the side and got a diamond pattern instead of checker board style. It looked great but then I needed half blocks to fill out a rectangle and that would be a step back on this big quilt so I decided to play with the smaller version using the diamond layout and focus on getting the original checkerboard squares laid out and sewn together. It turned out a little bigger than I expected but it fell together so well I am not complaining about extra. I spent 8 months sewing the Rose-Star pieces so I never expected to achieve in one month the machine piecing of the Blue and white project with extra blocks to spare and the green and white fence quilt still on the back burner but getting close to next... The slow hand quilting of Rose-Star will put it all back in perspective.

Queen size Dresden Plate Top seen from my back porch window laid out in the garden

Thirty 18" inch squares appliqued with plates and center circles

Dresden Plate Top spread on the lawn. 

After some time reading in a book on Quilting I discovered a pattern I wanted to try. This is called Seminole after the Indian tribe of Florida who developed it years ago  using only a hand cranked sewing machine. It's a cool strip technique that uses stripes of three colors cut and re-sewn on diagonals in bands. The result of my first experiment is a very neat row of diamonds surrounded by contrasting color and long solid stripes... First I thought I would add some into the Dresden plate blue and white quilt but since it is so large, I think not. The better solution is to make another quilt and get really familiar with this technique. The rotary cutter, ruler and hot iron with lots of starch make this possible and fairly quick work.

first length of Seminole piecing in blues

closer look at detail of the Seminole strip piecing

 It is very exciting to have these two projects so much closer to complete and then a new technique well underway and understood. All that thanks to the time and space provided by our great friends the Rupperts of Fairhaven Cliffs, Md. I am looking forward to playing with all this and more in the coming months as I figure out the next steps. New quilting friends at the DC Modern Quilting Guild gave me a tip to buy a "walking foot attachment" for my machine. I found one on a very sweet web page today devoted entirely to my vintage featherweight Singer sewing machine. It seems from further reading there that the sales man was right it's a highly sought after machine! This link will take you back to the 1930s sewing shop for a little time travel. I ordered the walking foot and expect to have it in a week or two to try machine quilting again using the right foot to keep things smooth under the needle of the crawling foot.

Chesapeake bay house autumn artists retreat

cirrus clouds blew in to view for a week of perfect weather 

first arrangement of wild and garden flowers Keith built upon arrival

view from the bay window at dawn one morning 

sun rise on the bay

Kudzu grows up and over trees in the little valley by the red house 

Unknown bug in the field

the boats docked in Chesapeake Beach by the railway trail 

green heron at the edge of the water hunting tiny fish thousands of them were visible from above on the boadwalk

one of many great blue herons stalking

beautiful cirrus clouds and crisp autumn air make for perfect walking weather by the bay

Mallard ducks on the waterway below the board walk trail

wild magenta purple morning glory on a barbed wire fence; ample seeds collected to add to our garden next season

King fisher perched on a pole along the waterway squawked  and fled a closer perch when we passed on the boardwalk 

white snowy egrets on that distant pier and in the shallow water's edge

on the ride home we pass in a Nature Conservancy's preserve and there was a flock of 9 wild turkey's strolling in a field at the edge of the forest.

Here the turkey's are marching off into the shadows aware of us but not panicked by it... still the photo from the car seat wasn't the best. 

beginning to notice some color in the eastern clouds as they approach the bay from the west.

we rushed over to the lake to get the best views of the sunset looking west

Rain had been in the forecast all day but not until sunset did we see any clouds 

by the time we made it to the lake (10 minute quick hike from the house) we began to see not only clouds and colorful sunset but what looked like rain falling

We headed back to the house as it began to get darker since we didn't bring a flashlight

from the bridge where we talked to a few of the fishermen who showed us their catch the white of the clay cliffs by our house are visible across the bay

We had a really great time staying in the Ruppert's red house by the Chesapeake bay this past week. Keith and I packed up everything we would need, including food and linens as well as tools and supplies to make our respective artist projects and drove only 40 miles from our apartment to the bay house Molly and her family offered us to use as an artist's retreat last week. We spent a day getting unpacked, setting up the studios we needed and then rains came and we were ready to work inside. Once the rains passed we were ready for a good long walk and there is always plenty to see and enjoy. I left my Internet and TV at home which allowed me to be very focused on my quilting projects and resting in between with good food and company. We took turns cooking, I made breakfast and lunch then worked while Keith made dinner and our late night egg white & bran galette with fruit, a routine we began while dieting that we keep because we love it so much. We went one day to Chesapeake Beach to the great little thrift shop. I got an armload of quilting fabrics and sheets plus two hand knitted wash cloths two dress shirts two pair of pants and two ceramic vases for a grand total of $7.50. Astounding to walk out with so much for so little. Then we took an ambitious walk on the boardwalk and trail along the old railway path. Nature abounds there with tidal marsh and flowing waterways that empty into the bay. Forest and fields... birds everywhere and a few wild flowers for the careful observer were a delight. I took a limited number of photos for the whole week. Total came to 46 in the end many of those of the amazing sunset and storm that passed over Fairhaven Cliffs the last evening we were there. We got drenched on the warm walk home but it was worth the wet spell to see the beautiful sunset and get a record to end our week with a dramatic show of colors. It is such a blessing to have an occasional retreat from the city where we saw wild turkeys, bald eagles, king fisher, blue herons, crows, ground hogs,deer and more creatures to many to list. Keith heard owls several times very late in the night but I slept through the concerts of hooting on this visit. We enjoyed a night of star gazing on the deck a few times and walks on the beach to collect drift wood and cuttings for Keith's work. I tried my hand at reed cutting (bamboo) to make some pens to draw with like Vincent Van Gogh used. I did only one drawing this time but now I have a collection of bamboo to cut as needed for more this winter. For me completing the Rose-star quilt basting was a major accomplishment for my week but I am going to post later on the quilting accomplishments when I get a few more photos to show.

in the studio

sunrise at the bay seen from the red house

Back out on the porch today to draw with cold wind and showers it's like November not the first of October. This afternoon I am heading out to the red house in Fairhaven Cliffs to spend a week alone. I am going to miss my partner who has too many things to do in town this week to join me but we both like having time alone. It's a chance to do things at our own pace. This morning the ikebana arrangement he left was the subject of my sketch. I will miss having flowers arrangements to turn to as I draw but there is the bay view which will fill in it's place or other curious things that I don't have access to here at home. I am looking forward to some time to spread out and get to work sewing on my bay project this week and visiting with the Rupperts.