| My name is Amy Nelson, and I'm not an artist
by education. I hold an engineering degree and work in a technical field. Early in my
career, I discovered that my "day job" wasn't fulfilling a void within myself.
After some searching, I discovered quilting. I didn't come to quilting in the traditional
manner. I'm a non-conformist of sorts and am not really satisfied with following the
beaten path. I like to go my own way. During the year of 1997, my quilting journey has
taken a very different track, of which this quilt, "Me, Myself, and My Friends",
is representative.1997 has been a difficult year for me, during which I made many
discoveries about myself and people for whom I care. I discovered the QuiltArt list during
one of the periods of vague dissatisfaction that I experience when I'm ready to approach
something new, but don't know what. During the summer of 1997, when faced with the ordeal
of the end of my marriage, QuiltArt became one of a few life lines that kept me sane and
strong. I've made many close friends, without ever meeting them in person. Many of the
members of QuiltArt contributed to this quilt."Me, Myself, and My Friends" is a
very different approach for me. It's the first abstract quilt I've attempted. The dark,
solid strips are representative of my old life: organized, methodical, restrictive. The
hexagons are representative of my new life: free, bright, full of hope. The hexagons are
pieced with the seam allowances to the front to represent the inside-out nature of my life
this year. Every hexagon was cut from fabric given to me by QuiltArt members as part of
the CyberHearts exchange coordinated by Susan Heydt. The "new growth" in the
garden of my life the quilting/online groups/people that have helped me through this year.
The green of the border represents the hope and healing I've come to know. My new life
refuses to be contained by any borders or boundaries. I've discovered, with a little help
from my friends, old and new, that (in the words of the song) "I am strong, I am
invincible, I am woman!". Back    Next |
