Thursday, October 28, 2010
Crazy Cool Fish
This is a Pallid Sturgeon at the Neosho National Fish Hatchery in Neosho, Missouri. The hatchery (which has been operating since 1888!) grows the endangered Pallid Sturgeons and releases them back into their natural habitat. This fish is so surprising. It's huge, and very unusual looking...prehistoric, actually. But it's also friendly and recognizes its keepers. The hatchery's manager, David Hendrix, met us for a tour of the facility, and I felt like a little kid meeting the "mama" sturgeons. The (unofficial) blog for the hatchery has all kinds of cool information about their activities.
Dec. 9 is the grand opening of their new visitor's center, modeled after the original center which was torn down some time ago. I love that it holds to such high aesthetic principles and connection to history. The visitor center lobby is full of historical murals and kids' activities (like a huge aquarium with a plexiglass dome that allows you to stand up "inside" the aquarium like you're in there with the fish...yeah, it's THAT cool.)
I designed a T-Shirt for the Friends of the Fish Hatchery to sell in the gift shop. Here's the one they chose, with a signature rainbow trout, the new visitor center, and the iconic stone arch that's been there since 1888:
I did several versions, and would love to get this one produced too:
Here are the Pallid Sturgeon "minnows" (each about a foot long):
And here is one of the "mama" Sturgeons sticking its head out of the water when we arrived:
Oops, that was the wrong picture...that was a picture I took of myself for the Joplin Globe, but it was so funny, I thought I'd leave it up.
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Summer fun
It's summer in Kansas and the cicadas are buzzing. The scenes by the highway are lush and green with a few dead and dried limbs in the trees. I know the physical reality of this wilderness would is hot and itchy, but the view brings something else to mind -- restfulness, escape, the feeling of walking blissfully through the landscape, smelling the vegetation and the sun-soaked earth, and being completely at peace.
I see similar "spots" regularly when I'm on the highway, but they're usually gone before I can snap a picture (especially if I'm driving :)) I do occasionally stop the car for a special moment, like this vulture...
...but mostly I just take pictures when I'm a passenger in the carpool, and hope they spark something in me later, like the landscape above, which inspired the sketch below.
Although I was frustrated in the making of this sketch, I've gone back to it several times in the last few days. There's something kind of wild and messy about it that I like. I think I'll base a quilt on it soon, just need to get more fabric in the right colors, I think.
The clouds in Kansas in the summer are brilliant.
And so are the kitties...
Love and inspiration,
Suzie
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
TEXTURE on display
TEXTURE
a presentation of textiles and sculpture
by Jack & Lee Ann Sours & Suzie Sours Israel
Opening reception:
Friday, May 28, 6 - 8 pm
at artCentral, 1110 E 13th Street,
Carthage, MO 64836
Pottery, weavings, stone sculpture,
and organic form quilts
will be on display May 28-June 13.
for info: artCentral@suddenlinkmail.com
Here are my pieces that'll be in the show. I'll videotape the gallery and post it, so folks can see what it looks like!
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Sharing
I'm trying to come up with a title for the "field" quilt, above. It makes me think of seeds under the ground, germinating and preparing to pop out of the ground when spring comes. It also is a very comforting scene to me; there's something that feels safe and secure about it.
Monday, February 8, 2010
More roadside inspiration!
In this photo, there is a lot more (and in some ways a lot less) information than in the sketch. But the photos are very useful while designing and creating a quilt. Below is the sketch I did in studio to prepare for making the quilt. I used the location sketch for the spatial energy, and filled in details with the photos.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
The Broccodile
Then I sewed several layers of jersey fabric over quilt batting and pinned the printouts to it, sewing over them to create broccoli and crocodile shapes. Then I tore away the paper, leaving the shapes stitched in thread.
The cats love to sit on anything I'm working on, especially something soft and cat-sized, like a baby blanket :)
Then I cut away layers of fabric to reveal different colored parts of the pattern.
And lastly, I throw it in the washer and the dryer to get the edges to shrink and tighten into a cohesive-looking whole. Here are pictures of both sides of the finished blanket, different due to cutting away fabric in different areas: