Student spotlight: Abstract-A-Licious

April 10, 2014

Original Abstract Study by Judy Krol

Last month I had the privilege of working with the Quintessential Quilters Guild in Columbus Ohio. Abstract-A-Licious is fast becoming one of my favorite classes as I watch students work through very simple exercises that lead to their own unique abstract designs.

original abstract – texture exercise by Michele Lea

It’s one of those classes where even absolute beginners are able to come up with very interesting and original designs. All my classes are like “kindergarden” where we are allowed to simply experiment and play. No worries about making a masterpiece here!

Looking at the world through a window – abstracting the environment into simple lines and shapes.

Many students have never tried to sketch before and that’s not what we do in this class. We simply see things with a pencil in our hand.

A more developed “looking through the window” thumbnail with texture and value added to the lines and shapes.

After we complete myriad small exercises we spend the afternoon creating an only slightly more refined “study” in cloth. We observe and analyze and learn to see where problems and possibilities lie in each design.