Wednesday, November 20, 2013

A design element - A line or two

"Design Elements", now there's a phrase that could strike fear in the hearts of a few quilt artists.  That is what our little art subgroup from the Guild decided would be the focus of our studies this year.  No, no we are not talking about the elements listed on a science periodic table.  We're talking about those little building blocks used to create some spectacular quilts.

The first "element" we discussed was "line".  Rather than define it here, you can read about it in Design Explorations for The Creative Quilter by Katie Pasquini Masopust, and The Visual Dance by Joen Wolfrom, to name a few.

Instead, below is what I found to complete our Guild art group's exercise representing "line";  show examples of vertical, diagonal, horizontal and curved lines.

I found examples in previous photos I had taken and armed with my trusty camera, I searched the neighbourhood for more examples, and came up with these:
These aspen tree trunks were a good example of vertical lines.
On close inspection of a mushroom picked out of the lawn, check out the lines of the cap.
These leafless branches, could be reproduced in stitching also representing line. 

Then of course there were these curved examples. 

And lastly here is the diagonal line I found. See the fencing along the driveway?
 
So where does all this fit into quilting?  Hmmm...I wondered that too.  I thought that "line" as a design element could be a thin doodle, a thick strong curve, or a jagged line.  It is when you consider the numerous lines used in free motion quilting.
 
However line can also be a visual orientation.  For example, if you want to portray the height of a tree, a tall rectangular orientation emphasizes the linear aspect of the tree rather than a square
 
What other examples of LINE can you come up with?




3 comments:

Vicki Miller said...

Ah, line, that thing we try to depict without actually drawing a line itself, or that's what my art teacher always said. A horizon is a line, breaking waves are a line.
I love your photos they are all so inspiring

Gina said...

I always enjoy reading about design elements and you've done a great job with LINE; love the examples you've photographed!

Pam @ Quilting Fun said...

Love your pictures. There is something about trees that do it for me,