Thursday 7 February 2013

Mapping - getting started

This year the Contemporary Quilt journal quilts are meant to be 8 x 12in. You also have to have a theme. I have chosen maps, because I have been wanting to experiment with different types of maps for a while.

The last few weeks I have been doing some of the research for it. I had thought to do maps recording places I have lived or gone to school. I considered making my maps following chronological order, but it was a bit of a shock to discover via Google that the primary school I went to has been knocked down!

And I want to ask my parents a few questions to sort out a few things. Like, "Where was 'the house Debbie was born in', where the young man found a box of money under the floor of the stair cupboard when he was looking for a ring - after we had moved away?" Yes, questions like that seem to be important to record at this point.

This research has opened up memories like you can not believe. Some not so welcome! It is surprising how much a map of a place can bring back things you had totally forgotten. So, since I don't want to go down any black holes, I may have to work up nerve for some of the places. Either that or just decide to fill in with imaginary maps. or even maps/plans of houses...
possibly even imaginary places!
Not so hard as you'd think because for some reason I am always dreaming about moving into and living in particular houses. and in the dream I usually discover some 'secret' room or even an unknown area of the house which turns out just right for a sewing studio!

Anyway, I decided rather than continue to dither, I will start with this neighbourhood. After all, I have lived here in this house longer than I have lived anywhere else and am nearly at the point where I have lived in this neighbourhood longer than I lived in my country of origin.

And so today, I am using my lightbox! Tomorrow I may have at least a start to show for Off the Wall Friday. One of our friends made it for me sometime back.

Speaking of memories, somehow it reminds me of an incubator for hatching chicks! Or even baby quails.
Haha.

1 comment:

365 Dresses said...

And for hatching baby quilts....which is, of course, the way my mind first read "quails."