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Monday, January 6, 2014

“The Gift”

“The Gift” (20" x 18.5") by Susan Brubaker Knapp
Copyright 2014

“The Gift” is done. I call it “The Gift” because this is how I think about the sights and sounds I encounter on my morning walks. This piece is based on a photograph I took in the fall of a leaf on the sidewalk, when I was walking my dog. (See previous posts for a shot of this photo.) 

There are days that I feel incredibly blessed to be alive simply to experience these small gifts. It is a feeling I attempt to cultivate, because there are also many days that I can cave in and feel sorry for myself. I am a very emotional person, and feel things very intensely, as I imagine most artists do. I seek out beauty around me as a way of keeping myself sane, balanced and happy.

To me, there is something exquisite and yet breathtakingly tragic about leaves in autumn. They are going out with a bang, in an explosion of color and texture. Very soon they are completely dead, dry and brown, and then they are mulch. Like all of us, I suppose. 

Here are some detail shots:





“Every blade in the field – Every leaf in the forest –
lays down its life in its season as beautifully as it was taken up.” 

– HENRY DAVID THOREAU –

11 comments:

  1. If I hadn't known it was quilted, I would think the first photo was a photograph of the original. You really captured the depths and color of the original.

    Debbie

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  2. So beautiful. Your quilting is incredible!

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  3. Just stunning! I know you are coming here to Las Vegas but don't remember when. Please post when the registration for classes is announced. I can't wait to see your work in person!

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    1. Thanks so much, Susan. I'll be at the Desert Quilters of Nevada in Henderson, NV, Oct. 16-18.
      If you are not a member, your best bet is to contact them and find out if they will let you sign up for classes even if you are not a member. I'm speaking Oct. 16, and guilds will usually let guests come to that without belonging. Hope to meet you!

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  4. Susan - your quilts are very beautiful. On this one, did you paint the grey background after you painted the leaf, or just how did you get that background?

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    1. Thanks! I painted the leaf first, then painted a medium gray background. After that , I painted dabs of lighter gray and darker gray on top

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  5. It is exquisite! And I love your description of why you call it the Gift. It fits me perfectly as well. When I am down I must get outside for a walk with my camera. Nature lifts me up.

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  6. Beautiful 💗
    Beautiful people preserve obeautiful memories

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