Hello,
I am finally home from lots of travel. On the second of April I flew with Liz to Florida to stay with Cheri for a week. We went off to the SAQA conference on Thur. After registration we went to the Deli Museum. The work was great and very stimulating. There was some of his early work along with some of his last pieces. We enjoyed the whole thing.
The conference actually started on Friday and It was very stimulating. The talks were full of interesting ideas. Hollis Chatelain talked about using emotion in your work. Her piece about gun violence in schools was epically moving to me. After a great luncheon, the topic was about writhing and your work. I write every day and this really reenforced this idea.
Ellen Noble did an expanded version of her talk about the Apple Tree along The Railroad, like I heard last summer. The talk and her examples have grown as she has had all winter to keep developing the using of the many dyed fabrics that she and her husband made from the dye that they created with the bitter apples, leaves and bark of one tree.
The Shin-hee talked about developing her personal style and showed us wonderful quilts that used only Yoyos as building blocks .
I did not find that talk by gallery owners very informative, but I think the idea of doing this topic is a good one.
Pat Pauly was the last speaker that day and she was/is always full of energy . Life is full of images,” she said. We all went out looking for more and took a lot of photos to prove it. We went to dinner and found some in the lighting of the restaurant. After eating we went to the galley opening of works from the Florida SAQA group. 
My old friend Roberta had a piece in that show . There were some great works there too.
Sunday we went to the Ringling Museum. After a great lunch in their cafe, explored the grounds a bit. We really only got into the first building, but visually it was lots of fun.
I loved this stilt walker. Lots of history here in this museum.
We also made it to the mansion were we visited the Japanese Ceramic exabit. We all took lots of close up of amazing work. My images of this sculpture have grown into a work already.
Monday we went to the Art Center of Sarasota we where enjoyed two great shows and spent the afternoon printing.
This felt work was by Christina Vicente. I know hard it is to make these felted shapes and I have been trying to make owls in felted ovels myself and so far that are a diester.
There was also a members show with two works by Cheri and lots of other folks. They are a talented group.
This shot was of the garden outside the Center. It is a wonderful sculpture. 
These are the prints that I made that day in the Art Center.
Then on Tue while Cheri went to a portrait class, Liz and I explored the Art galleries at the Ringling Art Collage. This is part of a community project where folks told stories and wrapped these circles to create a big work of art.
There was a wonderful little show of painting showing folds viewing Vamier’s work. You can easily see The Girl with the Pearl Erring in the center here.
There was also this visual color and light feast in a hall way in the gallery. We walked it twice and the colors were different both times as the sun changed the view.
We got home just fine and then Liz and I started the three day Spring Retreat at the Schweinfurth. The usuals were there as well as as two new gals. This is Joyce’s bed sized work for her daughter.
Nancy shared her end projects from the on line class she and I were taking with Fiber Art Take 2. These are so much fun. I am now inspired to get going and finish that class. Her work plus the fact that we now have a working printer.
She also did a lot of work as she finished this powerful landscape and the baby quilt one can see pinned up in the background.
Zas finished tying this work this weekend. Great mix of images.
Liz spent the time building these delightful little houses.
Susan gave birth to this lizard. I say gave birth as it took three of us to turn the form with lots of pulling and pushing to get the job done.
Victoria was there as was Sharon but I neglected to collect images of either of their works.
The Schweinfurth also is showing their Made in New York show at this time.
This piece is by Julia G.
This one is by Regina S. I sort of lost contact with her. This is strong.
This work called Working Hands really ticketed me. It won a prize too.
Progress Report: Plastic Silver Wear. This work is 30.5′” X 41.5″. It is my response to the NY/New Jersey Oxymoron Challenge. I finished it before we left for FL.
I really enjoyed adding the real plastic silver wear to the surface, but it makes storing it difficult as I sewed so many angles in my placement of the plastic parts.
Blood Test This work is 11″ X 25″. The nurse gave me the wrap that they use to make ones vain stand out when she took my blood at the last test. Thus the name.
The metallic shapes are leftovers form another project and the little buttons used to hold down the cut blue circles are leftover from my doll making days.
Lap 7-25
This
lap quilt is made with leftovers from other projects.
Lap 8-25 I finished assembling this new top yesterday.
Black Light This is my second run at the Oxymoron challenge. I had this idea first but could not find a way to express it. I started this at the retreat when there was no stress.
Red Tide I put in a lot of time on this piece this week as I did three meetings on Zoom.
Dreaming I started this at the Spring Retreat. It is based on the close up of the sculpture that I took at the Ringling art museum in Sarasota. The full shot of the sculpture is pictured above.
It took on a life of its own as I worked on it of course.
Robins Flight I did the stencils and printed the birds a few week ago and this piece asl got it’s start at the Spring Retreat. I am having fun with it and I have a new idea for a Red Winded Black Bird in a similar style.
It has been a full two weeks and I hope to catch up with myself soon.
Keep Creating
Carol