Turning ideas into an artquilt series

One thing I learnt this week is when you have something planned the best way to get out of it is to sneeze and to badly put your back out.  I didn't even know this could be possible until it happened to me yesterday.  It was so bad that I have been on 2 lots of pain killers for the past 24 hours.  This is amazing for someone who very rarely takes pain killers.  Life has interesting and unexpected twists and turns that can lead down 'exciting paths'.  Yesterday I had planned to painted and make collage all day.  I ended up snuggled in front of the fire keeping still with my drawing book researching a series of work I am beginning to work on.  Although my day didn't turn out as planned and was a wee bit uncomfortable it was so nice just to rest and draw and collect ideas.  

(sorry about the quality of  some of the photos but I am still pretty sore and I can only manage limited time at the computer and behind my camera.)

How to collect ideas for  new work?

So you are planning a new group of art quilts.  Where do you start?  How do you get ideas together?  What drawings could be useful?

I start by collecting different sketches,  photos and other peoples art work.  It gives me a reference point to start from and inspiration to get the creative juices flowing.

Next I get out a pen and a sketchbook or my I pod sketch app and begin to work ideas out by drawing and redrawing things I have seen or ideas that are in my head.

These are some of the ideas that I have been collecting.

Draw simple outlines of photos or ideas in your head.

Sketch an idea and colour in with pencils or water colours.

Try making different compositions of your subject 

Sketch simple shapes 

Sketch and colour in simple shapes

Repeat ideas again and again reworking those ideas 

in different ways.

Use a I pod and draw with a simple sketch programme.  Use only one colour.

Sketch in an I pod and fill in with air brush using different colours.

Try sketching only silhouettes 

Make a collage of an idea you like

The next thing to do is to start to go though your ideas and to find the ideas you would like to work more with more and to try to keep reworking them until you are happy with the composition.