Ann Flaherty's Strands of Imagination

I've moved to a new blog...

2008-10-08T09:46:00.001-04:00

Please visit my new blog by clicking here: Ann's new blog .

As I head into new ventures, I felt it was time to start fresh. I hope you like my work and will visit often.

See you at the new place!
Ann Flaherty

Stone Bones

2007-04-18T08:16:00.000-04:00

Stone Bones
22" H x 19 1/2" W
(click on image to view)

I bought the highlighted bead in this piece last year, and marveled at the tree that nature had imprinted in the stone. This is my attempt to replicate the scene in fiber.

The branch beads are from bracelets that I bought a few years ago. My local department store was having it annual post-holiday sale, with all costume jewelry marked down at least 50%. Adding a newspaper coupon, I purchased the bracelets for about $3 each. Each bracelet was chock full of the beads...I have plenty left for future projects. This was such a steal, as buying the beads direct would have cost me at least $30. The salesperson commented: "We wondered who would buy the Flinstone bracelets."

Beaded Shells and Wool

2006-12-11T09:07:00.000-05:00

This is a piece that I've been playing with for a week or so. After reading Larkin Van Horn's bead embellishment book, "Beading on Fabric", I just had to use these shells that have challenged me for quite a while. I LOVE this book. Larkin's descriptions and visuals demystify the beading process, and the images provide plenty of fodder for creativity.

Can't wait to move on to creating my own buttons! Now, I don't have to throw away those old boring jackets and blouses. I'll add some beads and unique buttons and recycle!

The rust color is a commercial 'burnt' velvet, for lack of a better description. Sorry...I never know the correct terminology. The blue is dyed wool, stitched with some eyelash and angelina.

Now...how to display it. I am perplexed over whether I should mount it on a background or not. I'm leaning towards not...but your thoughts are important to me. Please post your suggestions here.

9/11 Five Years Later

2006-09-11T08:08:00.000-04:00

I made this quilt one year after 9/11, and thought I had worked through the worst of it. But last night, as I watched the documentary on CBS, I realized I will never get over 9/11. As it should be.

If you zoom in on this image, based on a photograph taken on 9/11, you will see pentagon shapes stitched amongst the buildings and behind Liberty's flame. Please remember our military today and everyday.

My son-in-law is still in Iraq, my daughter is still missing him, his children are still missing him. This is the life of tens of thousands of military families who continue to combat terrorists in Afghanistan and Iraq.

This is why Operation Kid Comfort is so important, and why we need your support. www.operationkidcomfort.blogspot.com.

Peace and postcards

2006-08-26T12:15:00.000-04:00

Prayers For Peace...This quilt started several months ago, after a play day with my heat gun. I melted the synthetics to the black tulle, set it against the chartreuse sheer with imprinted swirls and waited. A few weeks ago, I thought about using the silk cocoons, to insert prayers into, but then settled on the rovings (I hope I'm using the right terminology, I threw out the package). I wrote my prayers on cinnamon sticks, inserted into the silk rovings, tied them with multi-colored chenille yarn. I thought the background fabric set it off nicely, adding an Asian flair...this could be a prayer scroll from anywhere, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, the America's...we all share the same universal prayer for Peace.

Prayers For Peace measures 23" Wide X 17" High and will be part of the PAQA-South ARTQUILTSfive exhibit, opening in late September. http://www.artquiltersouth.org/

I also sent out some postcards to the Fiberart For A Cause sale at the International Quilt Festival in Houston during October. This event raised more than $50,000 for the American Cancer Society last year, and is sure to beat that figure this year. Each mailable fiber postcard sells for $30, and makes the perfect pick me up or affordable work of art to keep. You can learn more about FFAC at http://www.virginiaspiegel.com/NewFiles/ACS/IQFPreview.html

When I was battling cancer last year, it was such a delight to receive fiber postcards in my mail, from all over the world. And my post-mistress loved it too!

Below are the images of the cards I sent to FFAC last week (sorry about the bad photography). I try to put a little whimsy in them, and hope the recipients enjoy them as much as I did making them.

Pigs Fly II is a result of the Fiberart Trading Group challenge. We created two cards, one to trade and one to donate to FFAC. In this instance, I created three...one was sent to my stepfather who is battling cancer right now. I thought it was important to have a subject that a man could get a laugh out of. When I heard about the tornado that hit the Jimmy Dean plant, all I could think about was...well if pigs can now fly...

The two Pink Power cards were created during playtime. I just love playing with my heat gun. They honor an old friend who recently passed away from breast cancer, and the opportunities that are lost. Remember, now and then...just stop and play.

Hope is the result of another play day. The soft furry fabric is so much fun to just touch.

And my frogs are just for fun too. It is so important to maintain some humor during adverse times. Imagine the life of a frog...just lazing around with nothing better to do than catch flies.

Please take a few moments to visit FFAC, and see all that Virginia Speigel has accomplished. I feel so fortunate to have the opportunity to participate in this very important project, and that I took the time to just have fun and enjoy it!

http://www.virginiaspiegel.com/NewFiles/ACS/IQFPreview.html

New Generation of Fiber Artists

2006-07-21T05:45:00.000-04:00

When I told Christian that we would be visiting him in Texas, has asked: "Mimma, can we use all those pieces of fabric you sent me to make a blanket for my Daddy?"
Does that tug at your heartstrings or what?

Here's a photo of three of my grand-
children, Josie, Christian and Joel. Christian and Joel are holding their first art quilts. Both have been using fabric for their fiber collages for some time now, but just loved sitting on Mimma's lap while that sewing machine whirred its way through their designs.
Bravo for our young artists!

Christian sent his art quilt to his Daddy overseas. For those of you who don't know, Christian is the reason that Operation Kid Comfort was started. I made that first photo-transfer Daddy quilt for him.

And if you think you recognize Joel, it is because he is the subject of Made in the USA' and art quilt that I created for the QA Challenge: E Pluribus Unum.

So . . . Here's to budding young artists, who just happen to be MY grandchildren!

Challenging myself

2006-06-23T23:21:00.000-04:00

This week, I challenged myself to use the Kimono scraps I bought at the Quilt Festival in Chicago. Actually, it was an exercise in creativity to remove a block I've been succumbing to lately. Take a look and let me know what you think...I think I succeeded. The cloud has lifted!
For now, they are not titled. I'm so intrigued with other cultures and will think of something appropriate.

For the quilt above, I used three kimono scraps...well four if you count the binding. The quilting replicates the brush the deer is lying on in the center piece. It measures 16 1/2 X 13 1/4.

This one was fun to create...I have so much playing with beads, but always worry about overdoing it. Simple design is just fine for me.

Five scraps were used in this little quilt. For the quilting, I mimicked the lines in the mountains fabric. This one measures 11 3/4 X 9 1/2.

Now... back to the 'brain' series. Always thinking!

The Global Art Project...A joy to be part of

2006-05-21T09:19:00.000-04:00

and what a delight it is to see this image of Meenakshi Mahajan with the work I sent to her as part of the 2006 Global Art Project, Peace Lily. I just love how she framed it.

Today, I received her exchange work, May Peace Prevail On Earth, a mixed media work that depicts the rush of rotation our Earth experiences in vibrant blues, purples, reds and white. A stunning comet in the sky reminds me of how fleeting Peace is, and our wish for all to experience it's blessing. I will post an image of Meenakshi's work as soon as I've had it framed.

American Quilter Magazine

2006-04-09T10:23:00.000-04:00

Please be sure to check out the Summer '06 issue of American Quilter Magazine for my article "A Quilter's Promise". If it's not in your mailbox now, it will be on newstands in April. Or you can purchase the magazine at: http://www.americanquilter.com/images/items/2597000001-lg.jpg

Little Quilts From Texas

2006-04-09T08:55:00.000-04:00

Little quilts have become quite appealing to me lately. They are manageable, easy to work on while moving in and out of the guest room (my temporary studio), portable (as we bop all over the country in the 'Z'), and best of all....instant gratification. They are done so quickly.

And they make a wonderful travelogue! Here are three little quilts that resulted from photos taken while touring the South Texas Coast. If you ever want to escape the cold, but are tired of the Florida rat race...try South Texas. We stayed in Laguna Vista, just over the bridge from South Padre Island, and about twenty miles from Brownsville and the border with Mexico. We stayed the entire month of January and had a blast!

The Brownsville tour, provided by the Brownsville Historical Association out of the Stillman House was wonderful. I was fortunate to be on the same tour as the Texas magazine writer, so we got the full treatment! Really...it was a wonderful tour and I encourage anyone visiting the area to sign up for it...and only FIVE BUCKS!!!

The first quilt is 'Brownsville Market'. I've been experimenting with beads, and learned quite a bit on the subject while making this quilt! Like...don't use too many beads!

Brownsville has a wonderful old downtown, filled with 'Ropas' or second-hand shops. I loaded up with wonderful materials to recycle into quilts. Some of those materials are in this quilt.

This is the 'View From the Old Bakery'. Attached to an old store from the frontier days of Brownsville, the original ovens are still there. The building is now houses offices for the University of Texas - Brownsville. I've got other images to make into quilts from this site. One from the back veranda is calling to me as we speak!

And this little quilt is of a flower that was growing like a weed under the porch of our condo. I'd never seen such a pretty little flower. It needed to come out of hiding. I've since learned it is called a Peace Lily. Last year, I signed up for the Global Art Project for Peace and decided on this image as my entry. The project is a biennial exchange of art for artists of all ages from around the world. I will be exchanging works with an artist from India and sending this piece out on April 23rd. For more information on this wonderful project please go to: http://www.global-art.org/index.html.

2005-12-17T07:37:00.000-05:00

The Power of Healing: Prayer
May, 2005, Fiber Postcard
Burnt and melted synthetics and angelina, machine stitching, beading

This card was made for Virginia's Speigel's American Cancer Society Fiberart For a Cause.
It sold in less than twenty four hours. Cool!
The caption on the back read:

Each individual prayer, action, aspiration,
on behalf of another,
connects to make a chain of hope,
penetrating the darkness,
breaking through,
letting life shine through.

It was so nice to participate in the challenge, as so many prayed for me last year;
I know those prayers saved my life.
My thank you to all of you.

You can purchase fiber art from Fiberart For a Cause at: http://www.virginiaspiegel.com/NewFiles/ACSFundraiser.html

This posting was updated from the May entry because of renegade comments. Please leave only positive comments.

Just Dance

2005-11-01T10:03:00.000-05:00

Just Dance
27 ½” X 24 ¼”
October 30, 2005

While traveling through Pennsylvania, we stopped and walked a section of the old Delaware & Hudson Canal System. As I turned one bend, I came across what looked like two trees dipping their branches down into the water, and, as a pair, they were dancing. My imagination ran wild, as I contemplated these two trees, oblivious to the decaying structures that used to support the canal, just playing in the current and enjoying the moment.

Here is my adaptation of that image in quilt art form. This is my cancer survival piece, as I now ignore the changes that have taken place on and in my body, and enjoy the present.
Just Dance.

Techniques and Materials: Commercial and hand dyed cottons, silks, and synthetics. Raw edge appliqué, paint, thread embroidery, and free motion quilting.

2005-09-11T07:40:00.000-04:00

Liberty Still Endures
33 1/2" X 20 1/2"

9/11 one year later. While the memories of smoke, debris and death remain, open borders on the top and right remind us that the darkness is lifting. We have endured. Pentagon shapes quietly mingle among the buildings and boldly maintain the torch of Freedom. The events of 9/11 have only made our military stronger, and their protection, seen and unseen, is everywhere America needs them. Liberty's torch shines beyond the borders, illustrating that, as terrorism knows no borders, neither does Freedom. One year later, Liberty Still Endures.

Ann Flaherty November 27, 2002

Four years later, these words still invoke strong emotion for me, for I truly believe that we are and have made progress against terrorism, that all those lives lost were not in vain. Please join me in remembering all who suffered as a result of the attacks of September 11th, and pray that we all find our way beyond the pain of that day to a stronger, unified United States of America.

Liberty Still Endures was the third in my Liberty Endures Series, and made in response to an invitation from "El 11 de setiembre a través del Quilt", an exhibit coordinated by Carolyn Veshlage and Carolyn Underwood and sponsored by the US Embassy in Costa Rica. I am still proud of my participation in this project. This quilt, and all the quilts of the exhibit, continue to cause an emotional reaction for me. You can view the entire exhibit at: http://www.clvquilts.com/CostaRica.htm

Ann
September 11, 2005

Ring Garden Collection: Hollyhocks

2005-07-14T06:30:00.000-04:00

Hollyhocks II
Ring Garden Collection
27 X 25"

Photo-transfer, thread painting, machine couching/quilting

Still in process, this quilt needs something. The quilt is '3-D', where the blossom will be stitched down in the center, allowing the pink to fall forward. It's just pinned right now.

The stem and leaves were quilted to batting, and then added to the quilt top.

The yarn was couched with the machine quilting. It just needs something...I started this quilt a year ago, and picked it back up last week.

Below is the first piece I made based on photos from the Ring Garden, 'Hollyhocks I'. You can see the 3-D effect better on this one.

This quilt was in the PAQA-South Fabrications show, and then gifted to my dear friend and A-1 nurse, Jan Ring. When I was so ill last winter, she flew down from Boston to care for me, and turned me around when other caregivers seemed to be at a loss. I thank God for a husband who had the sense to call the right person, and dear friends like Jan Ring.

Organics Matter (tentative title for the quilt)

2005-07-12T07:42:00.000-04:00

Organics Matter
11.5 X 30"
July, 2005

The first of the "Not Just Grey Matter" series, "organics matter" utilizes the Photoshop woodcut technique to print on fabric.

I chose soft colored fabrics with leaf impressions for the printing, and spiral infinity beads in the center of each brain.

A few years back, I heard a lecture on progressive medicine. The presenter spoke of the small empty space in the center of our brains. Medical Imaging techniques have the ability to catch the electrical conversation that goes on in this space, causing some in the realm of medicine to wonder if this is the soul.

While I have no idea whether our souls are visible or not, let alone the ability to cacth them on film, I applaud medicine's acknowledgement that we all have one.

Little scarlet drops and 'coiled' beads that remind me of what DNA might look like are scattered throughout.

We are more than a body that blindly gets through the day. We are all organic parts of the universe, always growing, whether we choose to acknowledge that fact, or not.

"Organics Matter" will be part of the INDELIBLE SPIRIT traveling exhibit curated by Annie Copeland. For more information, please see: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/The_Indelible_Spirit/

2005-07-10T10:58:00.000-04:00

Imagination Matters
18" X 18"
July, 2005

The second in my series Not Just Grey Matter, Imagination Matters is my rendition of creativity. It is a likeness of my brain, taken from a recent MRI. I'm not just a patient on the table, waiting to learn about changes in my condition, but a creative soul who just loves to have fun.

With so many ideas waiting to hatch, how can a machine possibly pick up all that is going on in there?