An Exercise in Improv

Last week I volunteered at my son's school to help the art teacher with some of her classes. She teaches art to the entire school. I noticed immediately that she was wearing an apron made from various quilting fabrics that I recognized. What I didn't know until she started talking to the kids is that it was a new apron to match the style of art that they were going to focus on - abstract art, made up of lines, shapes and color. They were starting with Wassily Kandinsky's concentric circles.

After the class, she told me that she had been searching Etsy to find an apron for the next major artist that she was going to focus on, Piet Mondrian. Well it was her lucky day that I volunteered in her classroom. I told her that I was a quilter and could easily make her an apron.

She sent me more info on the artist, along with this video as inspiration.



Of course, taking on this project really pushed me as an quilter since it was all improvisational with lines and colors. I was surprise that it got much easier as it went along and I wasn't overthinking the pocket panel. The main part of the apron is heavy weight decor fabric (actually leftovers from when I hemmed my bedroom curtains). Since it was going to be for art, I wanted it to be a bit heavier duty.


There are things that I think I might do differently if I were to make it again, like thinner black lines, but overall I'm very pleased with it. And it make a cute looking skirt too! I should have worn pants instead of shorts for the photos.




Tonight was the elementary school's open house for parents to come with their children to see their classrooms, what they're working on, and give them a tour around the school. I took that opportunity to give it to his art teacher. Happy to say, she absolutely loved it.

Comments

  1. What an excellent interpretation Diana, love it!

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  2. Really cute idea! At our Modern Quilt Guild I made a 'modern Mondrian' for a mini wallhanging. It's mixed with a method by Elisabeth Hartman has nearly no 90 degree angle.
    Greetings, Rike

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  3. It is a great apron and how lucky for the art teacher to have you as a volunteer! I wonder how many others you'll be making this year... ?

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  4. You did a great job interpreting Mondrian. No wonder she loved it.

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  5. How could she not?! That is so awesome that she gets aprons to match the artist she's teaching!

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  6. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this apron. Piet has been a favorite of mine for years and this apron just shows his style of work off magnificently. Thanks so much for sharing at NTT.

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  7. I love your interpretation. Really inspiring. Thank you for sharing !

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  8. Absolutely brilliant! I love seeing art in everyday life :-)

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  9. Two fantastics here . The apron you made her and that the teacher is clearly enthusiastic about her career . Good to see . A third fantastic that you made her the apron

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  10. I am Dutch and it made me always smile when I see Mondriaan is appealing to childs and adults everywhere in the world. Mondriaan was always changing and changing the compositions for a long time before he was satisfied with the result. I wonder what he would think of all the art schoolchildren and quilters make. I love your skirt. A beauty. I think the children had a lot of fun lessons with such a teacher.

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  11. Such a wonderful interpretation of Mondrian's work! Using that patchwork for an apron is such a clever idea, what a sweet & thoughtful gift.

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  13. What an awesome interpretation and a beautiful apron!

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  14. What a clever idea! I wonder who else is on her list of artists? I hope it is not someone tricky to reproduce in fabric, like Klimt!

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  15. What a sweet gesture for this singular teacher! : )

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