Sirena Series – Narrative Art Quilts
©2011 Susie Monday
The Question
A while back I received this email from a reader:
I have read your blog for a long time and have watched your work progress and change over time – I love the simplicity and subtlety you have developed. I was reading about how you chose “structure” as your theme or basis for your work and have worked from there.
How did you make this decision? I am constantly flitting from one process to another and from one idea to another – I want to make a commitment to something and continue to work on it. How did you rationalize in your own mind that having chosen “structure” that was it. Was it ok for you to only be a quilter?
I just love fabric and swoop from one thing to another – a bit of quilting, a bit of mixed media, I go to classes and become inspired and do nothing. My last big swoop was just before Christmas when I decided I would make children’s clothes!!! so I made some!!!! Now I am thinking I really want to go back to stitching and using fabric.
I know about going “what next, what next” but I seem to have lost that. I don’t seem to be able to set some process for moving forward. I joined the artist conspiracy for a while and felt I had nothing to work with, organize or to move on with.
Help!
Just a thought – do you mentor people? And how would you see that working. You are so committed to your work it is wonderful to see.
My Answer
You ask some hard questions. The answers are long and and a single email isn’t enough space to answer them. It boils down to mindsets. About learning to focus. But more importantly, about learning to say no.
It is human nature to not want to shut doors. We want to keep our options open. We don’t want to miss out on the fun. Yet it is often essential to reach our goals.
Steve Jobs understood: “People think focus means saying yes to the thing you’ve got to focus on. But that’s not what it means at all. It means saying no to the hundred other good ideas that there are. You have to pick carefully.”
While that sounds simple and easy, it isn’t. Saying no is often harder than saying yes. Every day ask yourself: “what can I say “no” to today?”
PS I don’t currently mentor anyone as I don’t have the time – between working full time and art and teaching – not much is left. Some day I will do some mentoring but it’ll be a few years down the road.
Working in a Series
The questions the reader asked are the mindsets I teach in my working in a series workshop. I send out emails three times a week for eight weeks and discuss these issues, because they are hard and it takes a while to understand them, practice them, and use them.
The workshop is about working in a series and we study the work of many artists working in a series and design elements to learn how to make better art and move our series forward.
We also spend a lot of time focusing on the big picture of being an artist. On the mindsets we need to be successful.
We don’t just talk about them, you get a chance to practice them and boost your studio practice to new heights.
Susie Monday
Susie was in my first workshop last summer and completed an incredible series of narrative art quilts during the five week course.
Susie is a well known and respected teacher and fiber artist and it was an honor to have her in the workshop.
You can see more of Susie’s work and get a list of her workshops on her blog.
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{ 8 comments }
Thanks so much for the generous compliments, Lisa. This online class was just wonderful,l and I am still working through new pieces — so the energy goes on. It’s not every class or workshop — in person or online — that have sure impact and influence. As much as the approach to series work, I appreciate the renewal and reminder of how important it is to consciously plan and focus one’s attention and direction. I’ve completed the quilting on four of the six large pieces and have completed two smaller works in the same series. One of the pieces won first prize in the San Antonio fiber arts group’s juried exhibition in 2011, so that was another plus!
Susie,
Thank you – I’m glad to hear the workshop has had a lasting impact. Your work in the class was incredible – it was a treat each week to open up your page and see what you had created.
Congratulations on the award! Definitely deserved!
—lisa
Is your last name really Monday? My maiden last name is Friday!
Mimi – great maiden name!
These are magnificent! Good Stuff.
Ellen,
Susie work was outstanding in the workshop. It’s no surprise to hear she received an award for one of the pieces.
—lisa
I appreciate your comments with regards to “saying no.” I spend a lot of time doing just that. When asked about my weekend, my answer is most often that I spent it in the studio. Doesn’t make for great story telling, but then, on the other hand, my real stories are in the studio, in the work. Thanks for talking about this. It’s taken a long time to learn.
Hannah,
Good for you and saying “no” all the time!
Yes – our lives sound quite boring when asked what we did all week and our answer is pretty consistently – “worked in the studio”. I say no all the time – and I finally got over caring if people think I’m boring. My real friends get it.
—lisa
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