Kindergarten - detail, Paula Kovarik, 2014
One aspect of this art form that reveals my inner self. Compulsion. An outlet for repetitive thinking.... Working on the background stitching of my kindergarten quilt has taught me a lesson in persistance. Each stitch about a quarter inch long. The piece measures about 3 x 3 foot. I am adding approximately 40 - 50 stitches per 2 inch square by hand.
It seemed like a good idea at the beginning.
raw edged, Paula Kovarik, 2012-2013
This piece has been on my design wall for over a year. The pic above is only a detail. It started as a failed quilt that I chopped up and reassembled upside down with strips of black and peach colored strips. The raw edges drip into each other to create a nest of layers that appeals to me. Every so often I take it down off the wall and add more stitching. A spiral here, some hand stitching there. It accepts whatever I add with grace and humor. I'm not sure I ever want to finish this one. It would mean that the process would end. And that's been the most satisfying of all that I do in art. The process.
