Below we see two sides of one quilt. Scattered geen eyed goldfish swim around a red octopus one one side. Each goldfish different because I want to remind myself each is an idividual although in the wild they look all the same to me.

On the other side several subtle dark octopuses crouch in corners. In the center circles flowers and leaves grow in a variety of patterns. Many of the leaves and flowers host bugs and in one circle lives a yellow spotted salamander, one of my favorite animals.

This octopus/leaf and bug side of the quilt is dedicated to a particular female octopus. A while ago she lived at the Oregon Coast Aquarium (they kept a resident octopus a few years then left it go replacing it with another).  So for several years this particular octopus lady slithered out of her aquarium most every night when the people were gone. She spent her time exploring the empty building. In the morning the workers had an extensive octopus hunt then put her back in her water. Octopus are one of my favorite animals too along with slime mold.

Octopus And Bug Quilt

Screaming Hills is about justice. The picture is fairly large and drawn with many layers of crayola crayon. As color was scrubbed onto the heavy rage paper the paper srtetched and perverted into waves.

I love problems. After weeks of pondering I backed the picture with cardboard then pushed silver colored silk pins through the picture with the tiny heads showing as part of the picture. The straight parts of the pins are bent behind the cardboard to hold them in place and flatten the picture. Pins peircing the people of the hills adds another layer to the anguish. I love problems.

I heard something wonderful on a particle physics program as a scientist said,

“Jumping from failure to failure

with undiminished enthusiasum

is the big secret to sucess.”

Screaming Hills

At times I was depressed so as a result the back of my quilt is scattered with sections of big stiches. I covered the problem areas with an octopus but couldn’t twist his arms to cover all the problems. So I added gold fish.

Amy is here adding my art to several web sights as I complained, “I am so tired of FISH!” Amy had no idea I was working on my quilt and said, “Try chicken.” Now that would been a weird quilt! An octopus, gold fish, and chicken quilt!”

Octopus Quilt