Verona

Today is a Independence Day in Italy- April 25, 1945, end of WW2

We started with a guided tour of Verona.

Our tour guide speaks perfect english. She touched on history, talked about the architecture and showed us important landmarks. Consensus: Verona is gorgeous.

I like to program this tour the first day of our trip. It gives people a sense of the city. During the next 10 days the travellers will be reminded of some of the things they learned by passing by those buildings and neighbourhoods.

The weather was pretty good for the tour, it rained a little after lunch but most people were at the exhibits and not walking around.

A good first day.

(if you have instagram check out sandrasstudiotextile for more about the textile trip)

Verona Trip 2019

The adventures begin!

The group gathers and awaits the opening at the Gran Guardia

The 11 travellers arrived in Verona today trickling in at different times. I spent the day going back and forth from the airport to the Roman area of Verona.

Everyone seems very excited about the location of their apartments and the city itself. Verona is big enough to be interesting but small enough to be quaint.

Our appetizers before dinner. What a spread!

All went to bed early. We start tomorrow with a city tour at 10 A.M.!

Having dinner all together in one of the apartments.

Presents for all!

A very special hand made gift (and unexpected!!!)
from Clodine for all of us!
What a beautiful gesture!
THANK YOU

A bottle of wine for each of the travellers.
Welcome!!

Buona Notte.

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More on Verona Tessile

Advertisements for Verona Tessile are up throughout the city.

200 Artists.

250 Textile works ranging from antique collections, to traditional quilts to contemporary art work.

11 Exhibits around the city of Verona.

It's the 5th edition. 10,000 people visited the exhibits last edition.

It's going to be great!

Press Conference this Morning

The 5th edition of Verona Tessile is on its way!

My quilt is the third one in from the left, f
olded under the person bent over...can't see it very well...

Today, a group of us were at the municipal building for the press conference. I have to say how amazing we are!! The association has 120 members. Everyone did something to help organize. A real team effort.

Here I am! 2nd row, second from the left, wearing sunglasses!!

There will surely be an article in tomorrow's paper.

Preparing before the press conference.
Verona flag in the background.

This evening there will be TV coverage. Rai 3.

A particular of the quilt  that hangs in the municipal building
made
by the members of Ad Maiora.
The design comes from the wrought iron work
of the Scaligere family

For the full schedule of the 4-day Verona Tessile festival, click here.

European Flag and the Verona Flag, a part of the municipal building and the
Venetian walls in the background.

I am very excited that Tuesday the group from Canada, England and Germany start arriving!

23 Minute Meditation

Whenever I go downtown, I make time to drop in for a visit at the AGO, even if it's for less than an hour.

Yesterday, I decided to find an art work I liked in a quiet room and look at it for 25 minutes. Look only at that. I found a piece from Abstract Impressionism.

Interesting experiment. It is amazing what I start to see and notice. I discover more as I look at it.

I see which strokes went over the white paint, which strokes were made over the black paint. What

strokes were made under.

Some of the black seems wet.

I see that not all the white is the same white. Not all the black is the same black. I see a darker black and a lighter black.

I see the width of the brushes.

I thought about the movements, the ballet, the artist's body made while he painted.

The artist's signature is absent. I found out when I researched it later that the work is indeed signed but on the back.

photos of Franz Kline's Cupola, 1958 - 1960, first floor at the AGO, west wing.

dimension: 198.1 x 269.9cm (78 x 106 1/4 inches)

In the Mood to Draw

I have been working on a series...well, it was in my head for a while and last year I printed some fabric for it but it never went further.

Today, I was in the mood to draw.

Sketch, a fast one

I did many blind contours. For blind contours you have to keep your drawing instrument on the paper at all times. You can not look at your drawing as you draw. You can only look at the contour of the object you are drawing until you decide the drawing is over. It's always a nice surprise to see what is left on the paper.

I like the shapes. Fun to draw. Very quick to draw. I like working fast.

Vertebra of a cow, a Canadian cow.

These are drawings for the series I still have in my head.

Printing Results

Here is the report from the silk screen workshop I took a few weeks ago.

The house heat eventually came on and I was able to dry the packets to set the pigment.

I lay the packets on the radiator.

Rinsing.

bubbles in the sink

I was so pleased most of the print was still visible.

I did not lose any of the designs.

I love the textures I've created.

Not sure yet what I will do with these pieces.