My quilt was inspired not only by our theme this time, but also
by Robert Frost’s poem “Mending Wall.”
First, the theme word:
in the current political climate, boundaries, specifically WALLS, have
been all-too prominent, in my opinion! Even more specifically: building walls. So what about showing a crumbling wall (or a wall like the Berlin Wall
being dismantled)?
Now the poem: the
most quoted line from Frost's poem is “Good fences make good neighbors,” but
ironically, and sadly, that is NOT the poem’s theme! Rather, the point Frost is making through his
speaker (a man and his neighbor are mending a rock wall) is that
fences, walls, boundaries do NOT make good neighbors, but rather, isolate us
and prevent us from fostering friendships or even mending fractured
relationships. That famous or infamous line is spoken by the neighbor, who unlike the speaker, feels that it's important to repair the wall between their two farms.
And so as soon as I heard what our challenge word was this
time, I immediately decided to base it on Frost’s poem. Something happened to me that has never
happened before: I had an instant mental
image of my quilt. I started to sketch
it, but then I thought, “Why? Why not
just jump in and design without a penciled sketch?” (I think that Carolyn often uses this method
of “jumping in and cutting”! Forgive
me, Carolyn, if I’ve not described accurately the method you sometimes use!)
I pulled fabrics from my stash, including the rocks fabric,
applied Wonder Under to them, and then began cutting out components. For the background sky and grass, I used a
technique learned in a workshop with Sue Benner, and that is, using narrow
strips of multiple fabrics.
I cut the wall from the rock fabric and then free-hand cut a
gap in the wall. I cut out smaller
pieces of this and other fabrics to compose the pile of fallen rocks. All these pieces were then fused down to a
background.
Your quilt is a great representation of the farm wall. I love your sky and the birch trees
ReplyDeleteThe composition is great and the fabrics perfect for the various components of the scene. I particularly love how you did the foreground and the birch trees.
ReplyDeleteWow! I love the crumbling wall. It is terrific. This is a perfect representation of the theme.
ReplyDeleteAlice, you always take something useful from all the classes you have taken! I, too, admire Sue Bennet's collaged pieces. Our entire lives as individuals and communities are spent building walls and tearing them down. What a wonderful interpretation of the theme. And the last boundary will be death itself.....
ReplyDeleteI think we must have been thinking along the same lines. I love that. You express it much more eloquently.
ReplyDeleteYour quilt is wonderful. I don't think you needed a sketch this time. You knew what you wanted, and you achieved it. Great job!
Alice this quilt is terrific. I thought of that fence line several times this month - and your explaining how the poem is misunderstood and misquoted!
ReplyDeleteStone walls are a favorite of mine too!! Reminds me of the farm land around here.
ReplyDeleteGreat quilt to go with the poem. Your sky is a perfect background for the trees and wall with its different color values and horizontal lines.
ReplyDeleteVery nice. Loved your poem inspiration & your text with the quilt.
ReplyDeleteOh Alice, This is my most favorite of all of your quilts!
ReplyDeleteHooray for free form creation without a sketch! Love the colors and the beautiful wall that is being removed. And, of course, I love the symbolism!
This is so perfect for this challenge. I love the free form technique for the sky and foreground. The break in the rock wall and the birch trees add so much depth. I love this quilt, Alice.
ReplyDeletep.s. And thank you for finding the stumbling block that was preventing me from commenting on my MM sister's quilts. Bunches of Hugs!
I was in that Sue Benner class with you and Carolyn; you did a great job on this piece using her techniques.
ReplyDeleteI really appreciate the story on the poem by Robert Frost; I did not know the whole story. (since the next challenge is 'quote' you can just repost this same work using your Frost quote... )
Hi Alice ... What a great quilt, and great interpretation of the challenge ! As others of our group have commented, I'll admit that I'd never heard the explanation behind Frost's poem..... So interesting ! Great job on this challenge !
ReplyDeleteThis is a beautiful representation of the poem. Yes, we are building walls these
ReplyDeletedays and I don't know what to do about it.
NM