Carol Taylor and The Harmony of Nature

 Illustration: Carol Taylor. Bountiful quilt.

Carol Taylor is a quilter of international renown who has created nearly five hundred uniquely different quilts in her short career as an art quilter, which started in 1993. Taylor works in such a wide and varied theme and format, that choosing a small number of quilts in order to illustrate this article is very hard. However, I have decided to choose three quilts from her large body of work that I am both intrigued by and admire. These three quilts may well not be the first choice of many when considering the typical character of Taylor's work, but they do seem to highlight the balanced maturity that she has achieved with her departure from the traditional structure of the quilting medium.

Illustration: Carol Taylor. Bountiful quilt (detail).

The three quilts that I have chosen deal with the theme of nature in a semi-abstract manner. Using harmonious, balanced and sympathetic colour tones, along with the natural and effortless curve and sway that is such an intrinsic part of the world of the flora and fauna of the planet, Taylor has set an agenda whereby the marriage of the many elements that make up nature have come together in a frozen, magnified and personal moment in time. These are moments that revel in the many hues and tones of colour and texture that make up the natural world. However, although her colour and texture tones, as well as her choice of composition, are both bold and positive in their choices, there remains a definite element of fragility in the work, a fragility that is often lost when nature is observed and transposed using textiles as a medium, particularly when using the often rigid framework of the quilt.

Illustration: Carol Taylor. September Song quilt.

Much of the success of these three quilts lies with Taylor's ability to break out of the working framework of the quilt. Her sensitive interpretations of nature seem to delicately lie on top of the quilted background, as if they had been momentarily and spontaneously placed there, rather than stitched to the background. Because the foreground of each of these compositions is allowed to roam free, as if to find its own compositional harmony, the pieces are in no way forced or artificial and therefore cannot be contained within the usual heading of pattern or even decoration.

Illustration: Carol Taylor. September Song quilt (detail.

These quilt work pieces have been produced by an expert in the field. Someone who has a deep, intrinsic and sensitive outlook and understanding towards colour, tone and the harmony that can be achieved through composition, as well as a deep understanding of the quilting process itself. Taylor's work may well be considered to be studies in both colour and texture, but they are acute studies and that's what makes them work well beyond the remit of quilting, into the realms of fine art itself.

Illustration: Carol Taylor. Silhouettes quilt.

Carol Taylor's work has been seen in numerous exhibitions across the US and into Europe, we are lucky enough to have seen some of her work at exhibition in Birmingham here in the UK. She has gained numerous prizes and commendations, as well as many articles and features in publications for her outstanding contribution towards quilting, and indeed the creative process as a whole.

Illustration: Carol Taylor. Silhouettes quilt (detail).

Taylor has a very comprehensive website, which features much more of her work than I have shown here, and contains details about exhibitions and publications that also feature her work. There is also information concerning her teaching workshops, which she regularly holds. The website can be found here.

All images were used with the kind permission of the artist.

Reference links:
Carol Taylor Website

The Creative Artwork of Cynthia Corbin

Illustration: Cynthia Corbin. Permeable, 2008.

It is sometimes difficult to categorise Cynthia Corbin's work as it is so much more than the title of quilting or even textile art can do justice to. The techniques used in order to produce the resulting textural and painterly aspect of her work could very well be seen as on a literal par with some of the best efforts of fine art abstract painting.

The fact that Corbin does indeed work with fabrics and stitching and not oils, acrylics or pastels is all the more remarkable as all the fabrics used are individually painted with dyes, rather than bought or dyed en masse. This attention to detail, taking each separate fabric as a project in its own right, allows Corbin to build up a unique library of artistic moments which gives her a perspective towards quilting that is much deeper, more personal and certainly more creative than most.

 Illustration: Cynthia Corbin. Blocked, 2008.

It is the mark making techniques and textures that have added a completely new level of richness and singular creativity to her work. These elements, which often seem more reminiscent to that of fine art printing or pen and ink drawing, create a surface that can be explored in its own right. That Corbin could easily be satisfied with that singular result is obviously not part of her creative makeup as she then applies the technique of building up multi-layers that take their strength from the traditions of quilting. However, she also challenges the formulas and preconceptions of that tradition, asking us to see beyond the limits of the craft and accept in full the compositional use of a whole series of techniques of surface and much deeper textural formulas that take this work well beyond both quilting and textile art.

The work that Corbin produces is worth seeing purely for its unique and therefore personally artistic and creative approach, but it also has an elemental sense that takes us out of ourselves and allows us to explore the fundamental use of colour and texture on an emotional level, rather than an intellectual.

Illustration: Cynthia Corbin. Removed, 2008.

Cynthia Corbin teaches various classes and workshops, is a lecturer and has exhibited her work widely both inside and outside the US. She has a full calendar until at least 2011 and it seems there is very little that Corbin has not achieved or is willing to achieve within her discipline. There is also a comprehensive website where you can see much more of Corbin's work and includes more information about her lectures, classes, workshops and exhibitions. The website can be found here.

All images were used with the kind permission of the artist.

Illustration: Cynthia Corbin. Storm Door, 2008.

Reference links:
Cynthia Corbin Website

Nelda Warkentin and the Balance and Rhythm of Nature

Illustration: Nelda Warkentin. Summer Light.

Nelda Warkentin's textile artwork can be said to have at its root, the acute observation of nature. This observation however, is not limited to the scientific and objective analysis of nature, but has much more to do with recognising the balance, symmetry and rhythm that is a fundamental part of the natural world.

Warkentin lives and works in Alaska where you can imagine that nature is writ large, but she also travels extensively and is able to appreciate the natural world in its many guises, which is then incorporated into her work. She is naturally aware of interesting elements of line, pattern and colour from a blade of grass to the surface texture of an ocean.

 Illustration: Nelda Warkentin. Palms Swaying, Whales Breaching.

Warkentin's style can be seen on a number of levels. Her appreciation of the natural world is obvious and can be immediately seen throughout most of her work. However, underlying this appreciation lie a number of other observations, and they have much more to do with the interaction of all living elements on the planet including the human one. The world we have created seems at first glance to be artificial and bears little resemblance to that of the natural world, but we are all part of the complex procedure that is the make up of all flora and fauna of the planet. Warkentin builds up her work in layers, gaining her inspiration from traditional quilt work. She uses the layering as a metaphor for the complex pattern that is the sum of each individual creature, whether that be a palm frond, a flying bird, or indeed the multi-levelled personality of a human. However, it also draws attention to the layers that can be seen within groups of individuals such as a flock of birds, a shoal of fish or a human community, where individuals are part of a larger whole.

Illustration: Nelda Warkentin. Early Spring, East Hill.

While the layering strategy is somewhat subtle and perhaps not immediately noticeable to the naked eye, what is more immediate about Warkentin's work is the obvious juxtaposition of the curve and the straight line. This is another analogy that she draws between the natural and hand produced world represented by the curve, and the contrasting geometrically imposed straight line of the human world of streets and buildings that is so much a part of who we are.

Above all, there is an element in the work of Warkentin that our natural sense of rhythm and balanced symmetry appreciates. Her work is made up of smaller parts, each being unique, but still similar enough to the other parts surrounding it to give us a well-balanced and harmonious final work. It is this feeling of harmony that allows us to fully appreciate the complex rhythm and pattern of nature.

Illustration: Nelda Warkentin. Glacier Rendevous 2.

Nelda Warkentin's work can be regularly seen across the US as well as worldwide from Japan to South Africa. She has a comprehensive website where more examples of her work can be seen and information about her life as an artist. Her website can be found here.

All images were used with the kind permission of the artist.

Illustration: Nelda Warkentin. Spring Swing.

Reference links:

Nelda Warkentin website