Art + Quilt: Design Principles and Creativity Exercises [Hardcover-spiral]

Lyric Kinard (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2009

Secrets for quilting success are presented through a variety of techniques, exercises, and insider tips to inspire novice quilters and experienced textile artists to make genuine works of art. Simplifying the basic fundamentals of art and teaching the underlying principles of the visual language, this guide explores texture, shape, line, color, and value with examples and hands-on exercises. Essential principles—such as focal point, balance, repetition, scale, and space—are paired with creativity exercises while guest essays, guest artwork, and inspiring artwork from the author allow readers to analyze how other artists utilize key artistic elements or principles and see how to successfully use these elements in their own work. Both a personal creativity coach and a guide for a hobbyist or professional artist, this reference clarifies quilting goals and takes the craft to the next level through design and composition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This is one of the best books to read in order to learn about design principles and how they can improve your art quilts. If you want to get serious about your art, get this book." — Fiber Art News

About the Author

Lyric Kinard is an award-winning master quilter whose articles have appeared in Quilting Arts magazine, and her works have been featured in numerous books and exhibitions. She lives in Cary, North Carolina.

Product Details

• Hardcover-spiral: 136 pages
• Publisher: Interweave Press; Spi edition (September 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1596681063
• ISBN-13: 978-1596681064
• Product Dimensions: 10.5 x 8.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #491,454 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Lyric Kinard is an artist with a serious addiction to fabric. Her award-winning wall quilts and wearable works of art are a product of her need and passion to create order and beauty while living a chaotic life as the mother of young children. She often says that her art is the only thing she does that is not undone by the end of the day. Her second love is teaching, which she has been doing in various capacities for the past 12 years. She loves to share her joy in the process of transforming plain fabric into a work of art.

Much of Lyric's work begins with plain white cloth which she dyes and paints to create the palette from which her designs spring. Her abstracts begin with an emphasis on color and are created on the design wall while her pictorials begin with a specific message in mind and are often meticulously drafted on paper before cloth is cut. All of her artwork is quilted to a layer of batting to add texture and to emphasize line. While traditional quilts are then bound and done, Lyric often adds more embroidery or beads and even more paint if the design calls for it. This further emphasizes the dimensional and tactile quality of quilts as a medium for expression.

Lyric has studied with many well known textile artists around the country and continues to expand her skills in the area of surface design. She has a BA in English Literature from the University of Utah and has also formally studied music and architecture. She currently lives in Cary, North Carolina with her husband and five children.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A basic foundation from which to work forward from, October 6, 2009

By 

Susan Bleiweiss "Sue b" (Massachusetts) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Art + Quilt: Design Principles and Creativity Exercises (Hardcover-spiral)

The author opens the book by saying that it will not teach you everything you need to know but that she hopes it will give you a solid foundation from which to spring and give you direction for further study. The book begins opens with a discussion on getting ready to create that includes guest essays by Janine Leblan who talks about Overcoming Fear, Laura Cater-Woods tells you "Yes, You are Creative" and Hollis Chatelain talks about "Doing the Work". The second chapter in this book introduces you to the Elements of Art sarting with some guidelines on how to do the exercises and materials and tools and then moves into talking about elements for the textile artist which include texture, shape, line, color and value. Chapter three deals with principle of design covering unity and variety, focal point, balance and symmetry, scale and proportion, depth and space, motion, and rhythm. Chapter four focuses on using a 45 minute a day exercise to explore all of the subjects covered in the previous chapters and includes a student gallery to illustrate the results. The book closes with a chapter on evaluation and critique to help you evaluate your own work and how to interpret the opinions of others. This is achieved with several gallery style pages of the authors work accompanied by questions to ask as you view the piece.

While this is a well written book filled with lots of beautiful work it does lack the in depth look at any of the topics covered in the second and third chapter which deal with the elements of art and the principles of design. However, it does, as the author states in the beginning of the book give you a basic foundation from which to work forward from.

Full color photographs and the authors easy conversational tone make it an easy enjoyable read.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars open your mind with this book, October 25, 2009

By 

F. Busby "bbusbyarts" (Albuquerque, NM United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Art + Quilt: Design Principles and Creativity Exercises (Hardcover-spiral)

As an art teacher, I am frequently asked by students to recommend a good book to start them on the way to art quilting.
I can endorse this one heartily!
So many people feel intimidated by the vast tradition in quilting, but Lyric takes you past this in a fun and friendly way.
Through her exercises, she teaches a variety of techniques that introduce a fine art approach to the medium.
This book is an essential part of everyone's book shelf who appreciates the fiber arts!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Do not pass go., March 8, 2010

By 

Melanie Testa (Brooklyn, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Art + Quilt: Design Principles and Creativity Exercises (Hardcover-spiral)

Lyric Kinard's book Art + Quilt, Design Principles and Creativity Exercises is an absolute treasure. If you haven't added this book to your library already, here are a few reasons why you should. Her writing style is gentle, encouraging, almost an embrace but like a good friend she also knows when to push and when to nudge. There are no excuses! And this makes for an even better creative ride.

Lyric's style is permissive and encouraging. She reminds us that we are all creative whether organizing our household or daring to embrace our own artistic selves, the basics are all within our grasp and ready to be shared with the world. Lyric breaks down the key aspects of art into 5 categories, Texture, Shape, Line, Color and Value and provides prompts to explore each idea.

Once these ideas are integrated into your repertoire, Lyric expands on these ideas by discussing some basic artistic principles; focal point, depth and space, motion and rhythm, to name just a few. She does all of this while peppering the text with ideas taken from major works of art, reminding you to place one foot in front of the next in order to become an artist in your own right, inspired by your very own experiences, armed with the basic concepts and ideas to keep you motivated, one piece of art at a time.

One of the best things about this book is the design game on pages 88 and 89. Just take your copy to a decent copy shop, ask them to print these two pages off onto card stock, cut them down to playing card size and play! Another great thing is that Interweave published this book with a perfect binding that conceals a spiral, this book will open and stay flat as you work your way through Lyric's exercises. It is a true workbook.

So. If you need to learn basic principles of design and composition or need a refresher course, this book will help you on your path, encourage and support your explorations and inspire you with the art contained on each page. And don't get me started on the quotes and essays by other artists!