I was looking through photos from the artist-in-residence open house at the Joan Mitchell Center in New Orleans. I realized that there were a few artists that I wanted to introduce to you. One of those is Beili Liu. Her work speaks to me through color, shape and theory. It helps that her grandmother's crocheted bed spread (and hundreds of needles) are part of one of her exhibits.
You can't see it in this photo, though I did try to get relatively close, but every thread hanging from this tar-covered piece holds a needle. I did not even see the needles until someone pointed them out. But once I did, my brain kicked into gear. I walked away wondering how many needles a quilter threads.
How many in the case of my grandmother, who hand-pieced and hand-quilted exclusive of machines? How many did for the women before her generation, who had large families? who needed several quilts on every bed. who had many beds? Oh so many needles! And I want little more than to thread a needle and pull it through layers of fabric and fiber.
I'm not quite sure what to make of these pieces. The indigo color was all I needed to be drawn to them. The second piece is a series of six inch squares each dyed using some form of blueprint coloring that is activated in the sun. The shapes are of objects that the artist recovered from one particular area.
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