Monday, December 10, 2012

Andrea Balosky's Amazing "Studio Droppings"


Today, Mary Bywater Cross brought me a bag full of goodies. They are what Andrea Balosky might call "studio droppings" - a term she used in her artist statement in the Small Wonders catalog.

"The Scrap Box contained mountains of scraps, what I affectionately call Studio Droppings. These were all the usual suspects, i.e. basic remnants, leftover blocks and block-parts, uglies, bad ideas, failed tests -- true remainders rejected for good reason."


These are, in fact, the studio droppings of Andrea Balosky. An old acquaintance of hers from Camp Sherman, now one of Mary's neighbors, had the stash. Today, Mary gave it all to me.

(Thrilled!)

If these are uglies, the pretties must be blindingly gorgeous. All of the pieces in this blog post are improvisational designs, something Andrea experimented with in her doll quilt series and with the "Log Jammin'" blocks. Perhaps these pieces are Doll Quilt Studio Droppings.





These are just a few of the things in the package. Mary had ideas about what could be done with them. One option is to hand quilt them, but I like how they're raw, unedited versions of the finished quilts I've gotten to know so well. The more likely option is they will remain in my collection as ephemera, objects that inform the completed works. Speaking of completed works, I have purchased two more Andrea's quilts from the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative. More about those later. :)

5 comments:

  1. These are fantastic! Congratulations. You must be thrilled.

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  2. Can you hear the sound of deep groans and embarrassed giggles from the distant Hills?

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    1. It's hard to hear anything over the celebration that's going on at Bill's house!

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  3. very cool blocks...the free piecing is marvelous!

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