Tuesday, March 26, 2013

A Wild Hair

Hi, it's Kristin. I have a bit of a split personality when it comes to my creativity. Sometimes I'm more crafty, particularly when the blogosphere conjures up something excruciatingly cute, or clever, or mushroom themed. Sometimes I'm a quilter. I really, really, like scrappy quilts with simple geometric shapes and feel the urge to make one every so often -- especially when my scrap bin starts overflowing.  Most of the time I consider myself an artist and have been working diligently on creating a cohesive body of work, which right now centers mainly around houses with roots and facets of military spouse-ness.

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But last week I got a wild hair. An idea I thought too good to pass up, but not at all in the line of what I had been creating. I've been worrying that I have no context for this. I can't show it with my other work because it is so different. I don't know where to exhibit it, or how to properly share it with the world. I could ignore the idea, and move on, but where's the fun in that? I slept on it and was still jazzed in the morning. It's consumed me all week!

 

What does one do when excited about something that doesn't fit into their usual sphere? It's a quilt, and my family plans to use it on the sofa -- it's craft. It's social commentary inspired by an internet meme, and references a historical artist -- it's art. It's quirky. It's not about being an Army Wife, or the dream house I wish for. It's an artistic conundrum for me.

 

Now, having written this post, I see that rather than being a complete anomaly, this quilt may actually be a perfect amalgam of ALL my maker personalities -- artist, crafter, nerd. I'm still not sure what to do with it though.

3 comments:

Karoda said...

Just get it made and operate on the impulse and jazziness of your excitement...then let come what may.

Liz Kettle said...

Wow, Kristin...are you sure we aren't related? Last year I joined a modern quilt guild challenge and made a quilt for it. I had a blast just making a quilt for fun. A few friends asked why I was doing something so out of normal realm and not 'me' at all. Because, it was just plain fun!

Natalya Khorover Aikens said...

What fun! looking forward to seeing how it looks on your couch!