I have seen so many beautiful bridges, old and new, that it was quite an achievement to resist the temptation to sew one. I also had to abandon my original, quite well-developed idea because that would have required a larger size to tell the story that I want to tell.
That was the point when I got back to the song that have been humming ever since the theme was selected: Bridge over Troubled Water by Simon and Garfunkel. I will never ever forget how Art sang this in the famous Central Park concert: slim and slender, ethereal voice, hands in back pockets. The concert took place on 19 September 1981, actually my wedding day, and quite surprisingly was fully broadcast in communist Hungary’s state-owned television just a few days later.
I consider quite impudent on my part to make a kind of portrait quilt when Phyllis and Valerie are really experts. Still I took the challenge, and selected this photo from 1969.
I wanted the quilt to be very calm and peaceful, soothing and pleasing to the eye, both in terms of colourway and shapes. After selecting blues, teals and greens I remembered that I had three large pieces of monoprinted fabrics that are evocative of waters and bridges.
This has become the 'water'.
Faces were cut from the left side of this piece.
Hairs and Art's jumper were pieced from these.
This is what poor Art looked like at the beginning.
The two busts were done, though some modifications were made later on.
The background of waters and bridges with just gentle curves was pieced from largish cuts. A relatively dark green arch had emerged in the top section which I reinforced with a few bridge-like strips. That was the point when I nicknamed the quilt as ’Paul and Art at Giverny’.
Even though there is very dense quilting throughout, not much is visible in real life because I used a very low loft batting. The quilt measures 58x40 cm.