Elizabeth Catlett Show

   I just got back from seeing the Elizabeth Catlett Show at the E & S Gallery west of downtown in Louisville. It is an impressive upscale gallery, and this was a very inspiring show.

Elizabeth Catlett's story is one of a first-rate artist, a woman of color who has endured many hardships. Her sculpture and her paintings and lithographs are remarkable, and the show has been very well-received.

Romare Bearden and Jacob Lawrence are two of my favorite 20th-century painters, and Catlett was a contemporary of theirs, as well as a friend. Another contemporary Black artist whose work has a similar graphic quality is Jonathan Green. I love his work, too.

There are similarities among the art of the three of them. The simplicity and graphic qualities of their paintings are very appealing to me. 

Also in the gallery were many prints by other African American artists, and many of them shared that simplicity and clarity. For me, many of the designs looked like "a quilt waiting to happen."

Elizabeth Catlett is now 94, and still working. Because she now has use of only one hand, she is no longer doing sculptures, but she is still painting and doing prints and lithographs.

This spring has brought some good shows to Louisville, and this one was one of the best!

(Photos from the online Louisville Courier Journal article about Catlett, 4/26/09)

Another rainy day

Bob got some beautiful shots of these irises yesterday. They have been exquisite this year. But I think they will get battered today by the rain.

I'm going to an art show today, should be interesting. 

I'll report more about it after I've seen it. She's an African-American artist, with links to Romare Bearden and Jacob Lawrence, two of my favorite painters.

What do you mean, "orange"

I spent yesterday shopping for the perfect background fabric for this project. I have a paint chip, but I know that paint chips are not always a perfect match. 

The painted wall is out in Portland Oregon, so I'll just have to solve this one without seeing it. That is the paint chip laying on the fabric choices.

I think it is safer to pick something significantly darker or lighter, rather than trying to match it  perfectly and having it look dissonant.

I bought six pieces of fabric yesterday to play with, and I figured I could use some for the backing, and maybe make little "frames" around the images with a solid. And add the rest to my stash, for my next project.

I have about decided on the "splotchy" fabric, and it has enough red in it to work with the red in the images. I may change my mind again, but for right now, I am moving ahead. If it doesn't work in the baby's room, they can always hang it in the hall, or somewhere else.

Here is another salmon that I finished yesterday. There is a lot of intricate cutting; thank goodness for sharp scissors.  I think I will add a little white to that negative space in the tail.

I have one more piece to finish today, a whale. Then I can start composing the whole thing. I am really enjoying this project, and learning a lot as I go. I continue to like fusing, and I look forward to quilting it as well. I just have to quit agonizing about the background and get to work!

It's a Keeper!

I've almost finished all the images for the baby gift wall hanging.  This salmon was loads of fun to do. I love the fabric, and the tedious cutting and fusing was all worth it!

The pattern and fabric were from equilter. I don't usually use patterns, but I really like this one.  My Florida friend, Mary Jane, found it, and it was perfect for this project, with its Alaska/NorthWest theme. 

I have almost finished all the images for the quilt, and today, I am going to shop for the background fabric.  I can't shop on line, because colors are sometimes hard to judge using the computer. The orange has to be just right because the room is painted orange; I have a paint chip to go by, and I hope I get it right!

Rainy Day after Derby

It's a rainy Sunday in Louisville.  We're just glad there were no downpours before or during the Derby. The track was plenty muddy, but fortunately, no jockeys or horses were injured, just covered with mud. It's interesting that the jockeys wore multiple pairs of goggles and took each pair off as it became too  muddy to see through.  The jockey who won was fun to watch, very emotional and charming. He had also won the Oaks the day before, so he was pretty happy.

It's always fun to see a long shot win. If I were to bet, I would bet on a long shot. I figure I'm probably not going to win, but if I did, I would know it.

We are supposed to get an inch or two of rain today. Most of the Derby parties are over, and things will return to normal. I've been sewing along on my baby quilt. Actually fusing, to be more accurate. It isn't a cuddly baby quilt, it will be a wall quilt, and so it just has to be fun to look at, not to curl up with.

Derby Day 2009

Happy Derby Day, everyone!

It's cool and a little damp here, but it's exciting anyway. Hoping it won't be raining this afternoon.

Louisville is always at its best in May, and this year is no exception. They got most of the debris from the ice storm cleared in time, the azaleas and tulips were beautiful this year, and everything has greened up in time for the first Saturday in May. 

I haven't picked my horse yet, but it's really fun to watch! The best two minutes in sports! That's about my attention span for most sports anyway, so it works out well.

Have a great weekend!

Horse sculpture by Bob Diehl, Photos by Cathy Rose Lyons

Where you least expect it!

As we were leaving the Kaviar Gallery several days ago, Bob snapped this photo of poppies in an alley.

They are so beautiful, and I wonder how many people get to see them and appreciate them among the garbage cans and recycling bins.

I have wanted to grow poppies for the longest time, so I bought some seeds that day. I'm no gardener, so I like things that are hardy. I figure that if they can grow in this alley, they can grow in my yard with occasional neglect.

The motto in my garden is "Survival of the fittest!"