I have begun a writing project: a body of poetry to go with a number of my art quilts. (OK. This is more a case of pulling an idea off the storage shelf and breathing new life into it. I have started and stopped the project a few times over the last year and a half. Letting it simmer.)
Looking back through my works, I rediscovered the concept of flying. It has appeared in various forms since I’ve been working in textiles. As I go through my writing notes, I can see why. It was such a powerful dream when I was a little girl. I dreamed of flying out of my bedroom window at night. I dreamed of standing up on the footstool and raising my arms, letting the air lift me as I saw it lift the birds.
I believe this is a universal longing. Flying looks so effortless and freeing when you look at birds!
One of my earliest art quilts was inspired by the idea of flying away. I took a small family snapshot of my sister and me stuffed into a little lawn chair and transformed it into a dream. (I’m the one on the left with my little feet sticking straight out).
One of the great things about depicting flying is that it’s an opportunity to depict the sky and what’s seen below. Here’s the whole quilt.
FLIGHT OF THE MAGICAL LAWNCHAIR. This quilt won First place in the Evolutions 2014 Exhibit at the Rocky mountain Quilt Museum, Golden, CO.
Here’s the current draft of a poem I wrote inspired by this childhood dream. (I post this as an act of bravery and accountability for the project. I have not posted or shared any of my poetry before).
It was there I believed
I could fly
standing on the footstool
the one with cut-outs in the legs.
I played pat-the-paw game with the dog
through the openings. It creaked.
With outstretched arms
Tippy-toe fingers
and seeing it so clearly
the rise and dip as I flew
my own brick house below.
Seeing into my bedroom window
small and dark
with one bright stripe of light
across the floor from
my friend the moon.
Flying can be scary. I used the metaphor of flight in this 3-panel work, “Wingwalker.” I like the way this image can stir more than one emotion. In one sense, being up on the wing is a great adventure. It would also be dangerous and terrifying.
WINGWALKER. Awarded the Mixed Media Award, October 2019 “64 Arts Exhibit,” Buchanan Art Center, Monmouth, IL
The process of flying away might sometimes be a little more timid. This is “Fledgling.” The little girls has made it as far as the telephone wire. Thinking about what’s next? Listening to advice from the birds?
If you’d like to see more about the art in this post, please visit my website.
FLIGHT OF THE MAGICAL LAWNCHAIR
WINGWALKER
FLEDGLING
The bird image in this blog post header is from a new paper work I created this week. On my website here. TAKING FLIGHT
Another poetry project.. Want to write?
Can you help spread the word?
I am a volunteer participant in a project to create an Art+Poetry book for the Florida Region of SAQA. It’s going to be a wonderful, artful collaboration. Please participate, or share this information with writers or writer groups you may know. Thanks!
Thank you for reading. I always enjoy questions and comments.
--Bobbi
bobbi@bobbibaughstudio.com
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