Very often, a little story quietly finds its way into my mind and becomes the heart of my artwork. In that fashion, a story about a little penguin called Glen who roams the rugged Scottish countryside popped into my head while I was working on a set of penguin quilt patterns. That reminded me of my first visit to the Dryburgh Abbey in Scotland. Last week, I hand-made books with my painting of its weathered stones as the cover, feeling the spirit of the place, and being reminded to pause and note the details we so often rush past. I will be hosting an art event in September where we can just take a few moments during the day to breathe and create.
Quiet Earth
InkFortnight: Small Pages, Stolen Moments
This September, I intend to do daily small artwork for 14 days, make something without any pressure. I would love for you to join me. You really do not have to have any drawing skills to partake. It’s about making room for the small pages that don’t usually get filled.
To that end, I am hosting InkFortnight.
The name and design were inspired by my love of books and medieval stone ruins.
- Theme – Quiet Earth: small, unhurried things. Not landscapes in the grand sense, but corners of them — a leaf, a steaming cup, the particular hush of staying in.
- Dates – A 14-day art event, running September 17 through September 30. Wrap-up post on Oct 1st.
- Venue – It will take place right here, no social media needed.
- Prompts – I came up with 14 prompts built around the theme of Quiet Earth. Follow them if they call to you. Freestyle work is just as welcome. You’re also free to use any media you want.
- Constraint and Size – The one constraint: size. 2″ to 3″, no larger. That’s it. That’s the whole rule.
Please feel free to share:
Download the InkFortnight Badge
The Dress-up Penguins
Scottish Penguin Glen Quilt Pattern
Glen had always loved wearing his kilt, but the other little penguins made fun of him. He spent his days roaming the hills and dales alone, having his own adventures. Although he was happy to go about on his own, he sometimes wished he had a friend with him. During one of his excursions, he found a new hill. As he walked up the hill slowly – he was a little penguin after all – it started getting colder and darker. Rain clouds covered the sun and very soon, strong gusts of wind started blowing him all over the place.
He hurried up the hillside and found an old broken ruin there. The hill was in a remote area and the entrances to the ruin were all overgrown with brambles. He took a little knife out of his sporran to clear a path so he could get in without spoiling his clothes. As he was cutting the brambles, something pink plopped down along with a few Thistle flowers. He loved Thistle. When he bent down to pick up the flowers and put them in his little sporran, he found a small pink stone among them. By this time, big raindrops had started pelting down on him. He scurried into the ruin to sit inside a big stone fireplace. There he sat, thumbing the stone and looking at the sky, waiting for the rain to let up a little.
Little Penguin Polaris Quilt Pattern
A sudden flash of lightning, and he suddenly found himself elsewhere, facing two other penguins. One was dressed in woolens and the other in Viking clothing. They were as surprised to see him as he was them. After a round of awkward introductions, Glen learned their names were Polaris and Olaf. He also found out that before they met each other, they had been lonely penguins too. Polaris said he loved his matching woolens, and that he had quite a few sets.
Viking Penguin Olaf Quilt Pattern
As for Olaf, not only did he love his Viking clothes, he also insisted on having horns on his helmet even though he was told Viking helmets didn’t have horns. He thought the horns made him look very mighty and formidable. They both welcomed Glen with open arms.
Painted during another trip to Scotland
Polaris gave Glen a little snowflake that sparkled in the moonlight. Olaf gave him a little fire-stone which glowed in the dark. Glen remembered the thistles in his sporran and gave each of his new friends a thistle. He showed them his pink stone too. All three wondered if rain and thunder somehow activated the stone. They were delighted to have found each other.
They are a happy bunch, aren’t they! I love them! Polaris was the first one I made, and then the others followed.
A Dryburgh Fragment
Very much like Glen, I also love to roam the Scottish countryside. The southern border abbeys are amongst my favorite places. Of them, Dryburgh Abbey stole my heart many years ago, during my first visit in 2007. The rain had just stopped. The wet and glistening stones and the serene choir music they were playing there shrouded the place in peace and quiet. There was not a single soul other than the two of us. The steward kindly kept the place open a bit longer for us. I sat on that bench in the far corner for a long time, soaking in the spirit.
I loved the tranquil moment of standing alone in front of this aged and wet stone abbey chapter house so much that it became the subject of my painting.
I never got to mention it here – a few years back, this painting was featured in a professional art paper product.
I make a new organizer book every year. It is such a favorite of mine that I have been using the same painting for the cover. There is comfort in familiarity.
The Chapter House was fairly dark when we visited. So I had originally painted it dark, as I had seen it.
However, in recent days, I had been thinking about updating the doorway. I knew the risk of ruining the painting completely, but my curiosity got the better of me. So with much care, I managed to make the changes.
Once that was done, I got to sewing books with the new art as the cover.
I add a little coordinated artwork on the endpaper of the cloth-bound books.
I added one of the windows on the linen-finish endpaper. I do love sepia-brown ink on cream color paper.
The hand stitched thick white paper really sets me in the mood for taking a little time to slow down for writing or sketching during an otherwise busy day.
These books are cloth-bound. I really like how the red cloth background enhances the warm tones of the stones.
I got the forest green cloth specially for the books with this artwork; the color echoing the weathered stones. It evokes memories of the weathered abbey surrounded by green trees as if I was there just yesterday.
The Dryburgh Fragment – A surviving piece of Scotland’s rich history.
Painting and binding these books lets me tap into a quiet space lost in time. I hope to see you in September for InkFortNight to find those little quiet moments. I am looking forward to it.
Until then,
-Soma
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