Size: 24" x 36"

Media: cotton fabric/thread, metallic cord/ribbon/thread, metal buttons

Price: $800

Kim LaPolla © 2001

Statement: This piece of one of three that I made as part of the Tarot Art Quilt Project. The project was put together by a group of fiber artists to create a set of art quilts representing each card in the Tarot deck.

Personal power, bold risk taking, showing originality--these are the attributes of the Two of Wands that speak to me.

I struggled at length with the appropriate imagery needed to convey power, boldness, and originality. I would decide on a color theme and image only to meet with complete resistance when it came to selecting fabrics for my palette. Finally, in a moment of frustration and resignation, a combination of bold red contrasted with deep black caught my eye and wouldn't let go.

With the color theme in hand, I assembled the background of the piece, bound it and quilted it. Then I hit another block---the wands.

Ideas swirled ranging from the practical to the bizarre, but nothing seemed just right. I ruminated for weeks, but as the deadline loomed near, I finally had to take the bold risk of combining two disparate ideas.

The result was a two stemmed foxtail-like plant, my personal artist symbol, boldly blooming two rotary cutters.

The plant represents the growth of originality and creativity, while the noon-day sun shining in the background is a symbol of the suit of wands. As for the rotary cutters, besides being a wonderfully bold shade of yellow, what other tool has aided such creativity and originality in recent years?

The rotary cutter is certainly a symbol of personal power, boldness, and originality for artists working with fiber.

Exhibition History:

• International Quilt Festival, Chicago, IL, 2003
• Tarot Art Quilt Project website