did you ever wonder....

have you ever wondered how i come up with the names for each design? there are several ways but they all lead back to my childhood or what i've learned along the way...


before me....is dedicated to the woman before me who have so painstakingly cleared the path for me to have the choice to do what i love...


i have attached a poem expressing that on the piece with an old photo of my great grandmother, jessie. when i saw the original picture of this board dated to the 1880's, i felt that the center symbolized the garden, and the different paths each one took, the upper gold corner represents the light that they are searching for, while the lower eggplant corner symbolized the growth that has not yet come to fruition....

i was discussing with another artist the other day over coffee and bananas (i know, rather strange), and jenni is preparing for her opening of a piece that will be shown in a matter of weeks...

she has traveled to europe and to her old roots in the north, tracking down unknown relatives, filming, editing and recording their lives to include in this historical piece that she has created, which also includes history of her family through fabric art....


so how do you let the person who is viewing your work understand the whole meaning of the piece? do you leave it abstract, tell a little, tell nothing. i myself like to know something that gives the piece meaning if it isn't obvious, that links me emotionally to the piece....i don't want to be left standing thinking, what is that?, hmmmm....if an artist tells me instead that they created this piece to show the excitement and diverse colors of their childhood, then i smile instead of just walking away....and i'm involved then....and i will remember....


how do you feel, would you like to know as much as possible, a little, or is it not important to you if you just love it? let me know... diane