Art Quilt Collage: A Creative Journey in Fabric, Paint & Stitch

by Deborah Boschert

Overview

To make great art, you've got to start! Make treasured art quilts from bits of cloth, stitched motifs, and painted details. This visual, step-by-step guide will help you dip your toes into the world of art quilting with mixed-media techniques, checklists, and work-along projects presented using 8 design guides. Unlock your own artistic vision as you quilt in a series, finish small art pieces, and incorporate meaningful symbols into your work.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781617452840
Publisher:	C & T Publishing
Publication date:	10/01/2016
Pages:	96
Product dimensions:	8.30(w) x 10.80(h) x 0.30(d)

About the Author

Deborah Boschert’s award-winning art quilts are shown in museums, quilt shows, and publications. She regularly shares her process in programs and workshops for quilt guilds and visual arts groups. Deborah and her family live outside of Dallas, Texas. deborahsstudio.com

Table of Contents

Introduction Chapter 1: Supplies Chapter 2: Inspiration and Fabric Selection Embracing Inspiration Gathering a Fabric Palette Ideas about Color See What Happens: Photo Inspiration Exploration Chapter 3: Design and Composition The Eight Design Guides The Design Check List Practice Project, Part 1: Inspiration, Fabric and Beginning Design See What Happens: Quick Fabric Sketches Chapter 4: Construction Raw Edge Fused Appliqué Tips for Working with Fusible Web Chapter 5: Personal Symbols Finding and Developing Symbols Adding Symbols to Art Quilts Using fabric Using paint Using stitch Practice Project, Part 2: Adding a Personal Symbol and Other Details See What Happens: Symbol Study Chapter 6: Surface Design What is Surface Design? Surface Design Techniques Practice Project, Part 3: Adding Surface Design See What Happens: Simple Repeat Patterns Chapter 7: Stitching Stitching For Art Quilts Planning and Designing the Stitched Layer Favorite Stitches By machine By hand Practice Project, Part 4: Hand and Machine Stitching See What Happens: Zen Stitching Chapter 8: Finishing Fused Backing Squaring Up and Cropping Edge Treatments Titles and Labels Presentation Practice Project, Part 5: Finishing See What Happens: Roll An Art Quilt Chapter 9: Gallery of Art Quilts Gallery of the Eight Design Guides Gallery of Additional Techniques Resources About the Author

Editorial Reviews

This book has the tagline ‘How to get from 'start' to 'art''. This is a very apt description of the book as it works as an exercise in mentoring the reader into creating art quilts. You can get a lot of books that try to direct you in this way but don’t always offer practical exercises to achieve it. Joen Wolfrom’s book 'Adventures in Design' did so very successfully (also published by C&T) and Deborah Boschert’s book reminds me of this. It doesn’t go into the subject of design to the depth of Wolfrom’s but instead, concentrates on the art of composition and surface design. What is different here is that you are given a limited set of tools and this helps focus the mind whilst developing the skills. The tools you are given are eight design guides to follow which are presented to you in simple diagrams. These basic layouts apply to all the techniques of creating a quilt through the book and you can see what makes each work. Working alongside that is a Design Checklist (which is a great way of getting you to analyse your work and change your layout accordingly) and the See What Happens exercises which offer a prescribed method of trying out new approaches. One of those exercises, using a photo you have taken, and working out the composition, shapes and patterns, provides a perfect way of improving your observation. This is a great book for working on developing a visual style and thinking more about the mechanics of composition.

December 2016 Workshop on the Web

Deborah's warm personality shines through as she encourages the reader from the get go. Chapters on supplies, inspiration and fabric selection, the design process, and much more supply a treasure trove of information that can be used as a reference again and again. Her eight design guides and design checklist provide a creative path that even a beginner can follow to success. If you are interested in exploring a variety of techniques to create your own artistic collages, this book will serve you well.

November/December 2016 Machine Quilting Unlimited

Would you like to try art quilting, but you're not sure where to start? Art Quilt Collage by Deborah Boschert shows you how to make works of art from bits of cloth, stitched motifs, and painted details. Deborah shares mixed-media techniques, practice exercises, checklists, and work-along projects that will help you unlock your own artistic vision as you quilt in a series, finish small art pieces, and incorporate meaningful symbols into your work. Published by C&T Publishing, the book is now ready for pre-order. A really awesome part of this book if you have not designed for yourself are the 8 design guides that Deborah suggests. She calls them Landscape, Grid, Third Plus, Symmetrical, Magic Three, One Amazing Line, Dancing Grid, and Modular. She then also shows you how to create variations on each! No more fumbling with composition! In addition, you will find chapters on adding personal symbols to your work, playing with surface design techniques, and of course, construction, stitching, and finishing!

mixed-media-artist.com, 8/24/16 - Cyndi Lavin

We do not usually need an excuse to quilt, but if you have been looking for inspiration, here it is in oodles. You’ll find easy-to-use design guidelines, ideas and more to get your creativity buzzing. The front cover gives you a real idea of what this book is all about. Inside, the contents include inspiration, design, construction, symbols, surface design, stitch and finishing plus a gallery of work. Throughout there are useful exercises too. Techniques are explained but this is not a step-by-step book as such, more a creative journey that you can join in and learn so that you apply processes to your own work. There was nothing new to me, but things do not have to be new to inspire and bring forth your own slant on ideas. Discover painted surfaces, stencils, applique, edges, text, stitch and more. I think everyone will enjoy the creative processes in this book that are easy to apply to your own ideas. I love the chairs, they are great.

11/1/2016 yarnsandfabrics.co.uk

The author is a member of the group "Twelve by Twelve": The International Art Quilt Challenge. In 2007, this group embarked on a series of collages size 12 × 12 ". Their last series was size 20 × 12 ". The author shows the variety of textile collages. Choose a theme or let yourself be tempted by a photo or a particular object. You can use small cuts or tissue scraps and complete your work with Thermofax prints, a freezer-paper cut pattern or another cut pattern. The possibilities of application are endless and can be performed according to your mood. At the end, complete them with embroidery or stitching on the machine. The book contains countless tips and tricks - let your imagination run and enjoy the warmth of your quilts on those cold winter days.

Winter 2016 patCHquilt

An exciting close-up of one of Deborah's art quilts as a front cover, plus the quote on the back, "How to get from 'start to art,'" both set the tone for this inspiring and motivational book. Although I am more of a traditional quilter myself, I greatly admire art quilts on display at quilt shows and often wonder how the maker has started on the process, how their journey has taken them from the inspiration to design and finally to a complete art quilt—something this book covers very well. There are no actual projects in the book, but should rather be used as a guide to work through the individual processes required to create a unique quilt of your own. Each chapter has a bullet list of the skills that are covered so you can flick through to the appropriate support you require. The chapter on Inspiration quickly made me realise there are so many starting points to a design, such as those pieces of fabric we all squirrel away but just don't know how to incorporate into a project. This chapter also has a brief but detailed guide to colour, how to use it and how to change the mood of a piece by adding an accent. The Design and Composition chapter clearly explains in text, diagrams and photographs of work the principles of the design process, while other chapters cover surface design, stitching and threads and the construction and finishing of a piece of work. I found this book very informative but not overwhelming in its suggestions and examples. It is very much a book to inspire and support you in the process of making an art quilt and would be of great value if you were following a course that includes a design component. I am looking forward to dabbling my toe into the world of art quilts with this book at my side.

December 2016 Popular Patchwork

In this book, Deborah provides you with the tools, knowledge, and nuggets of great advice you need to venture into the world of art quilts. Go forth and "see what happens"!

Winter 2016/2017 Quilter's Connection

Deborah is well known in the textile art world for her uncomplicated yet balanced and interesting compositions. In this book, she shares her approach in a way that is easy to understand and encouraging. Her method is to provide guidance and give confidence so that you can start tapping into your own vision. There is nothing daunting about the book, and it uses exercises and checklists to keep you on track. The aim is to help you identify symbols, colours, and other meaningful elements to make quilts and other textile pieces your own.

Issue 25 Down Under Textiles