The Art Of Geometrics

Back in the Winter, a friend of mine asked me to create a “barn quilt” piece of art for her. She commissioned me for the project. When I would visit her home, I told her the sun would play a key role in the design because she and her husband enjoy spectacular sunsets from their back deck. Other than that, she didn’t give me any specific requests for the design. She left it up to me. Then Winter became Spring, and before I knew it, Summer. I hadn’t any free time in the interim to start the project. But then, there was a deadline opportunity and that’s always helpful. Her 65th birthday was fast approaching and I thought, “Perfect!” I’d surprise her for her birthday…
As is typical for my process, I have no idea what I’m going to create, then my muse kicks in when I feel like creating and the design comes to me. Thankfully, my muse always inspires me when I have a deadline. So, I bought the raw plywood on a Saturday, and finished the piece by the follwing Tuesday, having worked on it for about 40 hours, and just before I left for a week’s vacation. When my friend and her husband came over to pick it up, she was beyond surprised. Lots of hugs and loving gratitude when they saw it. “It’s huge,” she said. Yup. It’s painted on a 4′ x 4′ piece of plywood because it’s intended to be displayed outside. That’s the reward, the gift… Her loving the piece.
Anyway, the end result is the image above and below are a few pics to show you the process. To the educated eye, it appears as though the border is slightly “off.” I can assure you, that’s just the way I cropped the picture. It’s difficult to take a perfectly-squared picture when the piece is sitting on a chair seat in my dining room, leaning against a wall.