Thursday, May 11, 2017

some questions to ponder


how does intimacy play into your work?
 is time always a central theme in your work?
 how do you conceptualize charting time through material?
can you speak about gratitude and surrender in the context of the quilt maker's relationship with her quilt?
 why do you often photograph your work outside in nature?
 you say that you make narrative metaphoric quilts, please explain
the raw edges of the torn linen damask express my open-hearted vulnerability
the wool string figure that stands up in the cloud of white air is slightly crooked
the self is both narrative and metaphor
when I realize that I can keep making quilts as long as I can thread a needle, I am full of gratitude

the stimulating questions in this post come from a young woman I spoke with on phone yesterday and I am still thinking about how I might best answer them
she was 21 years old, the same age I was when I made my first quilt.
"Love the questions themselves as if they were locked rooms or books written in a very foreign language.   Live the questions now.  Perhaps then, someday, far in the future you will gradually, without even noticing, live your way into the answers "  From Letters to a Young Poet by  Rainer Maria Rilke

4 comments:

Mo Crow said...

Judy you have such a beautiful generous heart, you share so much of your process and the thoughts that go into your work and love the quote from Rilke.

Threadpainter said...

What a great quote !
It was wonderful sharing a little time with you and Bethany ;)

Heather said...

I like how you answer the questions with pictures. Beautiful.

Judy Martin said...

The young woman's name is Grace

she is a student at Vassar College

She is taking a course entitled Exquisite Intimacy: Quilts, Quilters and Quilt Making. It is part of a larger course entitled Art And Activism in the USA.

The instructor is Lisa Collins.

Grace told me she would send me a copy of her essay. I'm looking forward to it.
x