I was quite inspired by this theme when it was first suggested as immediately my thoughts went to the Golden Gate bridge in San Fransisco. My son moved from the UK to California to marry and is now raising his family just outside San Fransisco. The Golden Gate bridge has many wonderful memories for me, therefore; indeed my son married in the Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park. I wanted to record that memory. However, after many sketches and trial designs I couldn't capture its essence in the way that I usually work - more abstract than representational. Too abstract and it wasn't recognisable, too representational and it felt less of a creative exercise.
I began thinking more clearly, therefore, about bridges in general: bridges as an architecture that often crosses water; bridges as making connections between people and places; bridges as crossing points and bridges as enabling togetherness.
My resolved design builds on all these meanings and, curiously, also captures the feeling of connectedness with my faraway family that I had wanted to portray in the first place!
Making Connections
Batik background overlaid with fused cotton, machine appliqué and machine quilted.
40cm x 84cm
Making Connections -detail