The world of art quilts and me

Often we find ourselves in a world where everything is so predictable... surround ourselves with things we know, meet only those people we know, do only those things we know, ...I've been an admirer of art quilts for sometime now ....ever since I stumbled across one on one of my browsing sessions on Pinterest a couple of years ago. I never dreamed of making one myself ! The concept was too alien ... I was just beginning to make quilts by meticulously hand-cutting pieces and sewing them together with precision to create a pattern. I couldn't imagine doing something so random and haphazard, unorganized, chaotic....and how would you even wash it? .... Even the snippets on art quilting in the weekly  quilting mail subscription (which was basically just a paragraph 🙄) terrified me - why would anyone go through all that trouble to mix small pieces of cloth to do this? Come to think of it, that's exactly what I was doing😳...but mine was organised, usable, etc....right?Nevertheless, inspite of all my doubts with washability, usability, etc., I was fascinated! I was never making the run-of-the-mill quilts anyway...so whatever I made drew me into this world closer and closer, be it the Color schemes I chose for the quilts, or the patterns that I developed, or the creativity exercised in putting across a concept in the form of a quilt or the bold fabric choices I was now making.Along the way, I realised the true reason as to why someone would go through all that trouble to mix small pieces of cloth to make such a quilt - to create art! For that is what it is - Art. It's not a usable piece of bedding, but something strong that is made with a lot of emotional involvement, invokes emotions and thoughts, something that can be proudly displayed by an owner in a home, gallery, office, etc, and can be the center of a discussion! Who wouldn't want to make that? If they can, that is ....That was the real problem here, wasn't it? I didn't think I had the ability to make this. How do I go about making it anyway? Where do I even start? And what would I make anyway? That last question was easy to answer in the very least! This picture of my Brother-in-law and co-sister was something I had loved for a long time ...but choosing a photo is the easiest part here!My BIL's 50th birthday provided the much needed push for me to take a Peek at this new and enticing world of making art quilts.  You can read all about my experience at making the Gathered Treasures art quilt here, or watch a video on the making.Suffice it to say, that this new world is exciting! I find myself constantly thinking of new projects to make .... now, it is finding a good photo that is the difficult task! 😂 who would've thought that a peek into a new world can be so life-changing! Liberating even ! All my worries about the chaotic, unorganized, random and haphazard manner of this art ....turns out that is what I absolutely love about it!Take the time to peek into a different world....you may something you absolutely love !