Third Times a Charm

(Above:  Third Times a Charm. 27" x 27".  Paint and free motion machine stitching on canvas.  Click on any image to enlarge.)

I promised myself that I wouldn't spend more than a day on this hair-brained idea. After all, my only intention was to be supportive with regards to a SAQA (Studio Art Quilt Associates) regional call-for-entry.  I have no expectations that this small piece will be accepted.  There are so many other, much more talented art quilters whose work will undoubtedly be better than mine.  This was simply a personal challenge, a way to participate in my region, and to see if I could do something that seemed so unlike me!

(Above:  Minnie and Ernie playing on the three art quilts under consideration for the chopping block!)

I read the prospectus for this regional show ... called Trio ... when it was first issued.  Only 2D art quilts with fabric sleeves for hanging slats would be eligible.  I don't generally make such things. I simply ignored the call-for-entry. As the July 31st deadline approached, Facebook friends in the region urged me to apply.  So ... the challenge was on!  Spend only one day!  Enter something that is somehow or the other related to the theme "trio".  I brought out three art quilts made using painted canvas from a 2016 public art project.  (Click here to read a blog post about that weekend!)  Minnie and Ernie were very helpful while I considered how I might cut them into some configuration of "three".

 

(Above:  Third Times a Charm in progress.)

I stared at the cats and the quilts. My thought process started with the title of the public art project and the work I made using the painted canvas.  It was called Nike's Advice ... as in "Just Do It".  I generally don't paint; I certainly hadn't painted in public ... with the public ... for two days!  It was a risky thing to do. I kept telling myself, "Just do it" ... an popular slogan, an adage ... which reminded me of another common phrase:  Third Times a Charm.  That's THREE, as in "trio" ... as in elementary school multiplication tables: 3 x 3 ... as in a traditional nine patch.  Seriously, it didn't take long for me to know that only two of the art quilts were needed for a traditional nine patch.  The mostly yellow piece just didn't look good with the other two art quilts.  Eventually, it was rolled up and put away.  In minutes, I found my rotary cutter.  The other two were cut.

 

(Above:  Third Times a Charm, detail.)

 

A red, white, and blue variegated thread was in my stash. It took less than an hour to zigzag stitch the nine pieces together.  My statement (which I had to shorten due to a strict word count) is below.

When the prospectus for Trio was first released, I had no intention of applying. The exhibition's parameters excluded three-dimensional or custom-framed work. This limitation seemed incompatible with my practice. Traditional wall-hung formats rarely suit my approach to the creative process.

As the deadline approached, however, multiple friends encouraged me to reconsider. Their persistence prompted the question: What might I create that meets the criteria? I recalled yards of painted canvas made during a pre-pandemic public art project. The material was later transformed into two-dimensional art quilts, rarely exhibited due to COVID-related cancellations.

This reflection led me to imagine a third iteration, something more aligned with traditional installation expectations. What could be more classic than a nine-patch quilt? Three rows of three. I revisited two of the earlier quilts, reworking them into this timeless configuration. Perhaps, in this new form, the work finds its place. After all, the third time may be the charm.